Intoxicated
by Curly Bubble
Summary: What really happened between Riven and Darcy when they were dating? How did this affect Musa? How Riven went from being intoxicated to sober. Includes interesting twists and turns. Please read and review.
1. You Blew Your Chance, Dear

Author's Note- Hey people! I have been reading stories posted on fanfiction, and i thought i owed the site atleast one story. But be warned, my stories are always long and it maybe a tad boring. but I really hope you enjoy it!

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It was a nice, normal day at Alfea. The Winx Club was ideally hanging around in their common.room. Musa had a blank expression on her face. She had been daydreaming about Riven. Again.

Stella was on the phone with Brandon, blabbering about the latest shoes in the market that she had aquired. Suddenly, there was a pause.

"WHAT? "

Stella fell off the couch she had ideally been hanging on with Bloom and Flora.

Everyone's attention was now on Stella. She didn't mind, of cause.

"But snookums…why? Didn't you see it coming! You know we … I was trying setting him up with…have you talked to…?"Her voice trailed off. "Yes ,honey….the dates still on tonight…don't worry…yeah, yeah…love you too…."

She clicked off the phone.

"Well, you blew your chance, dear" she said addressing Musa.

"Who… why... what..?" Tecna said at once, sounding totally out of character.

"Riven…"

"What?!" What happened to Riven?"

Concern sparked from Musa's eyes when she heard his name. He wasn't DEAD was he? She thought with a shudder.

"Darcy…" now Stella was just playing with her.

"Come on Stella, spit it out!" said Layla. She was getting pretty annoyed.

Musa ran to Stella and grabbed her shoulders. Her eyes held a desperate plea for the information Stella was baiting her with.

"Stella!" she cried angry and desperate "Tell me! What did Darcy do to Riven? Is he hurt ? Where is he?"

Mirth formed on the blonde's face and she slowly comprehended what Musa was thinking.

"Its not what she did to him, its what they are doing... together" she let the last word stretch on for miles and miles before stopping.

"Together?" Musa thought she understood, but didn't want to.

"You blew your chance sweetie…. he's all Darcy's now"


	2. I'm Not Perfect Like all of You

There was silence for awhile, as the Winx club absorbed the information. Then came the battering session. Tecna was the first to start.

"Logically, you should have made your move long ago." She said, in her painful British accent(A/N No offence Brits!)

."Timmy and I …. "she blushed, trailing off.

"Yeah.." began Bloom sweet but stern. "I _was_ shy when I wanted to talk to Sky _before_, but now look at us…we're inseparable!"

"And talking to Helia was a big deal before, but we've made progress…." Added Flora, shyly.

"Guys.." she began but was cut off again.

"I've been saying it over and over again honey…." began Stella "You need a boyfriend all of us have one. The only odd one out is you. Now that Riven's out of the picture, let me try setting you up with Hobby or….."

"NO!"

She didn't want to be set up again. She still remembered Stella's previous attempt to set her up. His name was Jared. It had been so awkward.

"Musa…" it was Layla this time "I know how it feels like to be alone….but now that Ophir is around…"she said softly, trying to soothe her friend.

But instead, hearing her best friend batter her about 'loniless' was the last straw for Musa.

"Shut up! Shut up all of you! Don't any of you try to hook me up again! I don't need any of you!" she screamed on the top of her lungs.

She had had enough of her friends. And their stupid boyfriends. They were all so perfect. She hated everyone of them! The line-up was so well-matched, it made her gag. Everyone was rich, famous, powerful and beautiful. And two of them were princesses.

Bloom, the sweet and sensitive princess of Sparx got along perfectly with the handsome blonde prince.

Stella and Brandon had been together like forever. Stella also was rich and pretty, and the princess of Solaria. And even though Brandon was not royalty, he was Prince Sky's loyal squire.

Tecna and Timmy often hung out doing geeky shit. The had the perfect excuse to do so, but everyone knew what was actually going on.

Flora and Helia had also been getting along very well. There were a lot of flowers and yoga involved.

And the newest evolvement… Ophir and Layla. Before he had come along Musa and Layla often hung out when the others were out with their boyfriends. Musa thought of Layla as her best friend. Not anymore.

For the first time in her life, Musa felt totally alone. The sensation it created in her was shocking, as she was used to being alone most of the time. She had been an only child. Her mother had died when she was young. Her father was always away on tour. She was used to being alone. _But not like this._


	3. False Hope

She needed some peace and quiet, just to think. She had always found solace in the forest near Alefea. _She was no supposed to go there alone. _

She knew that. But right now she was hurting. _When did she care a damn about a stupid rule anyway?_ _What would Riven think? _

The thought only made her more angry. What was Riven doing with _Darcy_ anyway? If that was the type he went for, she didn't stand a chance!

Still musing, she sat down at her favorite spot under the old, gnarled oak tree, which grew beside a lake. Her favorite pass time had become throwing various objects into the lake and seeing how far they could go. Thinking about Riven and Darcy, she angrily began to throw stones into the water. With brute force.

"Hey…. aaaaw! cut that out!"

The voice came from the water.

_It's_ _incredible…impossible…unbelievable…_. She thought. Someone's in the water. And it sounded like Riven.

_It can't be….._ _but it was_. Musa couldn't hide the faint blush that crept up her cheeks as the magenta-haired specialist poked his head out of the water.

"S…sorry" she stammered "Didn't see you there." _OH MY GOD! What is HE doing HERE?_

"Well, then maybe you should try to look a little before hurling objects pointless into the water." He pouted. "If I were a fish I'd been dead by now!"

"Well, I wish you were! When did you start caring so much about the environment anyway…."

Suddenly, she stopped speaking. Riven was coming out of the lake. And he only had his boxers on. Her faint blush turned beet red.

Within seconds, he was standing beside the tree.

"Look…. even the towel's on the tree! And my clothes too!"

"Okay... okay… I'm sorry!" She replied, her hands raised in surrender. She couldn't take her eyes off off him. He looked so good right now. Musa licked her lips nervously.

"Now that's…… what I …was waiting to hear" he said, triumphantly. He then looked at her. She was looking directly at him, which was strange, as she almost always avoided his eye. And she was blushing. Furiously.

"Hey Musa …you okay? You look kinda flushed..." he grinned. _He loved teasing her. _

_Oh my god! He noticed! Look away! Look away!!! _

But she couldn't. Her gaze only managed to leave his angular face to land on this tanned, muscular and well-toned chest.

"It's probably the…. the heat..." she said clumsily.

"Really?" asked Riven playfully, cocking his brow. "'Cause I'm freezing my butt off…"

"Then you shouldn't have gone for a swim, dimwit!" Musa grinned. _Two could play this game _ she thought.

"Believe me, I didn't…but now…I'm not so sure" replied Riven, his voice became sincere and affectionate, making Musa's heart leap. She forgot about everything, the world, her problems, her friends. There was only her and Riven.

"After all, nothing's ever dull with her around.."

_Huh? She didn't understand…._

"Her?" she blurted out.

His eyes clouded up and her stared past her. A dark brown- haired girl in a skimpy black bikini was running towards them, arms outstretched.

"Darcy"


	4. Intoxicated

"Puppy Dog!" Darcy ran towards Riven and flung her arms around him.

Riven held her and kissed her mouth.

Musa could not bear to watch. She turned away, feeling sick. Her heart broke into a million pieces.

Noticing her, Darcy broke away from Riven and glared at Musa.

"_Well_, what have we here? IT looks like you even brought me a present! How thoughtful!"

It was Riven's turn to be confused.

"Present?" he asked.

Darcy pouted. "For my _experiment?_ You haven't _forgotten _have you?"

In truth he had. But he didn't want to face her wrath. He remembered all too well what had happened to him _the last time._

"Of cause, not baby…I'm still working on it. She's just…. here" he replied hesitantly.

"You mean she followed you here?"

"No, no… it's not like that..." Musa intervened finally. "I think I'll just leave..."

"Oh no, you don't…" Darcy grabbed at Musa's hand "You just got here… haven't already finished admiring my boyfriend?"

Seeing the stunned look on Riven's face, Darcy smirked. _So he didn't even know._

"Didn't you guess honey?" She gushed. "Musa _loves_ you."

Riven just stood there, too stunned to react.

"We _can't_ have that now, _can we?_" she asked Riven sweetly. She gazed deeply into his eyes, hypnotizing him.

"No…no…we _can't_..." replied Riven mechanically.

"That's it…this is just too freaky, I'm out of here…"

Darcy cut her off with a maniac laugh. Riven joined her.

'_Riven…what's happening to him…'_ thought Musa as she watched Riven's face transform into a cold, hard mask. His eyes were hard and steely and bore into hers. There was nothing human about him anymore.

He grabbed her arm and held his saber against her neck.

"Your not going anywhere, _lover_" her whispered into her ear. His warm breadth made her shiver.

"What…what are you going to do to me?" She asked, as she desperately tried to transform.

"Trying to _change_?" mocked Darcy. "It won't work pixie! Fairies can't transform when they are _intoxicated_…"

Musa didn't understand. She was not drunk! But here heart was going a mile a minute and it had nothing to do with fear, and everything to do with Riven's proximity…

Riven's hot breadth on here ear got closer until he began to nibble her earlobe. The sensation that rocketed through her was so strong, a moan escaped her lips.

"Its working" he chuckled and he began to kiss her neck, trailing hot, wet kisses with his lips."

"No... Oh no…" gasped Musa, as she finally understood why she couldn't transform. She was intoxicated, but it was not booze, it was Riven. Strong, handsome Riven…who just happened to be in nothing but his boxers…her breadth caught her throat.

It was just too hard to fight. The sensation welling up in her was so strong; she could no longer control it. _Desire. Passion. Lust. Intoxication._

The sweat that had formed at her temple began to roll down her face. Riven's tentatively lapped at it, running his tongue over it several times before finally finding her mouth.

He was not gentle. Or tender. He grabbed her and crushed her mouth to his with so much force, that she feel onto the grass, taking her with him.

_He was a really good kisser. Excellent, in fact. _

His lips were pressed furiously against to hers, and he was not holding back. His devilish tounge ran along her teeth, begging for access. Once again, Musa tried to rebuke him. His thumb trailed her lips and he slowly thrust it inside her mouth, making her open it. His tongue found hers, and flicked at it gently, making her moan loudly, allowing him totally access to her mouth, which he took immediately.

Their hearts began to race at the speed of light. Riven softened the kiss, moving his tongue more gently against hers.

It was her first kiss. She didn't care why he was doing this. She knew it had Darcy's approval, or else she won't just be standing there, arms crossed over her chest. _The only thing I care about right now... It's him… its Riven. Only Riven. _She took a deep breadth and began to respond to his mouth.

"Oh… Musa", he groaned. Riven was so confused. Where did he get the courage to finally kiss her? And why didn't he feel any butterflies in his stomach? He felt as if someone else, though him was doing those things to Musa. _She was enjoying it,_ he noticed as she whimpered just a little bit for him.

But when she began to respond to him, he actually began to regain control of himself. He lifted his hand a gently caressed her cheek as the kiss ended.

When Musa timidly raised her eyes to his, she saw Riven, faced etched with overwhelming emotions. He was no longer wearing the cold mask. He was taking deep breadths, trying to regain his composure, his breathing ragged and irregular.

"Our first kiss" he said huskily, his voice was heavy with passion. He planted a soft, swift kiss on her lips. He could feel her now. He was in control. The force that made him do those things before was gone. It had been him that had kissed her this time.


	5. The Flashback

Darcy was beginning to get worried. And a little jealous. She was loosing control over Riven.

_Maybe he loves her after all _she thought angrily as she saw passion etched on the specialist's face when Musa raised her face to his.

Darcy knew they both had something going on from the beginning. And she had always guessed that Musa was totally head over heels for the jackass, but did he feel the same way. He was kissing her as if he did.

Darcy's instructions to Riven had been clear. Make out with Musa. 'Intoxicate' her. Make her scream and moan and what not. But she hadn't expected the scene in front of her to get so passionate. It was lovey-dovey enough to make her gag. She thought Riven was above that.

_Guess I was wrong _she thought, as the unfamiliar feeling of jealousy began to grow like a wildfire inside her.

"Our first kiss" mumbled Riven. He than planted a soft, swift kiss on her lips. _That was the last straw_.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" yelled and infuriated Darcy. "Riven! Get away from her right now!"

But Riven wasn't listening. He was looking tenderly into Musa's eyes, bending down to kiss her again,

"I said NOW!" Darcy's outstretched hands emitted invisible illusion rings. As the rings encircled him, he pulled away from Musa and stood up immediately. Her eyes were bright and they summoned his obedience.

"Yes my love?" his voice was flat and without emotion.

"Take the girl to the dungeons of Cloud Tower, use your levi-bike. My sisters and I will join you shortly"

"Okay"

Musa was utterly bewildered by all that was taking place. Half her questions would have been answered if she had known that Darcy possessed the power of illusion and had put Riven under her love-spell, which he had been close to fighting when Musa had touched his heart by responded to his kiss.

It's a sick game those two are playing, Musa thought already regretting responding to his kiss. They are probably going to take me to Cloud Tower and make a fool of me.

Riven roughly grabbed her hand and began to pull her towards his levi-bike.

The bike brought unwanted memories flooding back in Musa's mind.

FLASHBACK.

The first time she had seen Riven. There had been a sporting event at Red Fountain and the fairies were invited. She had gone reluctantly, as I would have been rude otherwise. No use sulking around in school, anyway. Armed with her walkman and two wards of bubblegum. She watched the bike race with some interest. The specialists were fast. But one of them stood out. He was desperately revving the bikes engine. This guy was in no mood to loose. I _wonder what it would be like, to sit at the back and wrap my arms around his toned abs… _she fantasized, as he sharply kicked his opponent our of the way. He toppled over and fell off the bike. There were oooh's from the crowd.

"Who is that idiot?" enquired Musa, thought there was disguised admiration in her eyes.

Flora glared at Musa. " 'That idiot' is my boyfriend!" she said. "His name is Helia, remember?"

"No! I meant that one… that rude fellow who kicked his opponent's butt?"

Musa asked, pointing at him as he was heading towards the finish line. The newest member of The Riven Fan Club found herself encouraging him.

"Cute isn't he?" asked Stella. "Nothing compared to my Brandon, however"

"Not everyone things of boys that way you know!" cut in Layla, annoyed. "Musa was probably asking who the jerk was so that she could kick his ass later for _cheating_"

Nothing could be further from the truth. Musa chose to keep that opinion to herself and continued to keenly watch the specialist.

He came in second. Musa could not help cheering.

"Go Sky!" the Winx club cheered for sky, who had come in the first place. If only they knew who muse was cheering for.

END OF (OVERLY DONE) FLASHBACK

Author's note: After submitting 5 chapters at once, I'm surely going to need a break. Of cause, the frequency at which the next chapter will be posted is directly proportional to how jobless I will be in the near future and how fast my stupid dial up connection is.

Oh! And thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed it.

P.S. I have to confess, I still do not know what the heck 'R&R' is I'm pretty sure one of them stands for review anyway! So you can do that if you feel like.


	6. Be Careful What You Wish For

Author's Note: Hey…had a lot of free time. So I thought I'd add two more chapters for you guys! I hope you enjoy. And if it is slightly boring, you can tell me, because I got bored when I was rechecking it!

* * *

_I wonder what it would be like, to sit at the back and wrap my arms around his toned abs… _She remembered thinking. 'Be careful what you wish for', the cliché was so true.  
She tried to transform just once more, but Riven had provided enough 'intoxication' to last her the entire day. Right now, she was weak and vulnerable. She had always depended on her powers and her friends in the past, but she didn't have either or them at the moment. 

"Sit" it was a command, not a request. Musa tried to look at him but he would not catch her eye.

"SIT!"

Trembling slightly, she looked nervously at the bike. She had never been on one before. It was awkward; she didn't know how to sit and where to put her legs.

"Sit, or it chop you to pieces, fairy!" he said. He was getting mad. He had to be there soon. If Darcy reached before he did, she would be mad.

"I… I don't know how…" she whispered, ashamed. _If only Layla had laid of Ophir for a minute and taken her for a round! She thought, _bitterly cursing her best friend.

"Oh god I so don't have time for this…" growled Riven. _She doesn't know how to sit on a bike?_ He thought, strangely curious and intrigued.

"What about that Jared fucker? Didn't he ever take you?"  
Musa was astonished that he knew. She opened her mouth to retort, but he cut her off, raising his hand up.

"Actually I don't care" he said curtly. Then he began to 'teach' her how to sit on the bike. "Okay, put your right leg on this step raise yourself up… that's right ….that wasn't so hard was it?" he asked, and was a little taken aback to discover himself smiling.

A strange force attacked his mind._ It was Darcy_

(A/N Mental Conversation between Darcy and Riven)

_Are you bringing the girl or what? _"_Yes, darling" __Get your butt here soon. _"_Sure, baby but what do you intend to do to Mu..." __That's none of your business. Just come! _

A little annoyed, Riven briskly got on to his bike.

"Hold me" he commanded, stiffly.

Musa began to blush furiously. She was thankful that this time, atleast, Riven couldn't see her.  
When she didn't comply, Riven turned around abruptly to catch the fairy blushing. "I said hold me" he repeated, his voice softer this time

She seemed even more embarrassed now, and blushed even more.His face was so close to hers. _If I move just a little closer, I can kiss her one just more time…_ he thought

Grunting in disapproval, he shook his head to clear the mist clinging to his brain.

"Fine" he said evenly. "Don't say I didn't warn you"


	7. The Bike Ride

He started his bike. It roared dangerously. Riven was a rash and furious driver. He had always tried to remain above the speed limit, and today was no exception.

As they took off, he felt Musa tremble behind him. _Nothing more fun than giving a stupid fairy a scare_ he said to himself. He was shocked when he realized he was not, in fact having any fun after all.

He was feeling a bit uneasy… and concerned. She was pressed close to him; and she finally seemed to have given up, as her arms snaked around his waist, creating nonexistent butterflies in his stomach. He gulped. He cautiously slowed down a little.

But the trembling only got worse.

Riven gave in "What's wrong?" he asked trying to keep all the emotion out of his voice as he unknowingly increased the bike's speed.

"Riven, I'm really, really scared…"

It was true. Musa had never been so afraid in her life. She always thought it looked like fun, but it was the worse experience she had had, apart from her mother's death.

Riven stopped the bike in mid-air and turned around to look at Musa for the second time. Her chalk-white skin seemed to have gotten paler, she was trembling like crazy and he could see a hint of unshed tears in her eyes.

"Don't be afraid" he whispered "I'm here, okay?" there was certain warmth in his eyes that she had never seen before. She nodded half-heartedly.  
Riven bent his free arm backwards and held Musa to him. His touch seemed to reassure her as he went on a record slow pace. _He was going to be late, and Darcy would be mad, but Atleast Musa won't throw up all over him_ he thought.

Musa's arms began to loosen their grip around Riven's waist until she finally withdrew them. His arm still remained around her.

"You can let go now," she said exasperatedly.

"Cold bitch" he thought as his hand reluctantly resumed its place on the bike's handle.

Musa's pounding heart was beating at a slightly more normal pace now. She took a deep breadth a found herself actually enjoying the ride. She knew what awaited her after the ride was not pleasant, but there was no way she could avoid it. She just wanted to get it over with as fast as possible and get back to her monotonous life. She had had enough drama today to last her a lifetime.

"We can speed it up a little" she told Riven. Riven grinned. Finally.

"Even my grandmother would have said that earlier" he replied, his evil streak evident in each syllable of the sentence.

"That's a lie! You don't even know who your grandmother is!" she said evenly.

"That's true…" he sighed, thinking about his dysfunctional family. "But let's see you handle _this_"

With a burst of speed, they shot through the night, uninterrupted and undeterred.

Musa felt her heart race. _This is fun_, she thought as the wild wind whipped her face with so much force, it unraveled her pigtails, sending her hair flying. Musa hooted, her voice fighting against the wind to be heard. _So this is what it feels like…. to be free_ She thought. Her arms went back on to Riven's waist, but it was not fear this time.

She could see Riven in the rear-view mirror. His head was angled slightly backwards, enjoying the gusts of powerful wind blowing against him. His face was a picture of pleasure, which was intensified greatly as a thin drizzle interspersed itself within the wind. A wide grin spread across his face, enhancing his sharp and chiseled features.

"Liked it?" there was a mixture of surprise and admiration in that question.

She nodded and giggled.

"Yes" she said breathlessly, and as it began to rain more heavily her arms tightening around Riven.

Cloud Tower came finally came into focus. They had reached faster than she expected. Riven got of the bike and held his hand out to her. When she gratefully reached for it, he pulled it back with a jerk, causing her to fall facedown into a puddle.

"A little taste of what you'll soon be experiencing" he chuckled, as he helped her up.

Author's note: Okay, I'm done for today, no idea when I will update next. A big shout out to all the reviewers! Thank you so much for all the support! Peace and harmony (something I love to say instead of 'bye')


	8. Bike Trouble

Author's note: I just realized that I haven't added a disclaimer!

Oh well, it's never too late.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Winx Club, but I aspire to marry Straffi and get its rights transferred to me… muhahahahahahaha!!!

* * *

Musa's blood boiled as she reluctantly accepted Riven's help. He certainly was not the mushy, nice guy anymore. She tried to make sense of Riven's behavior. She got why he was kissing her at the lake, but she could not ignore the fact that he seemed to really care about her. _The way his arm had held her when she was afraid… so protective and possessively._

_It had something to do with Darcy_. She knew that, but what? She acted as if she owned him, controlled him against his wish, like she had put him under a spell… _but that's ridiculous!_ She reprimanded herself. _You're just making excuses for Riven, by the look of things; this could be the one behind the whole master plan!_

"You look like the swamp monster, you know that?" he smirked, taking a minute to look at her. Her pigtails had come undone, her hair untidily stuck out in odd places. Her face was muddy from its encounter with the puddle. _But even then, she's beautiful_ he thought, as he eyed her with admiration.

_Why am I doing this anyway? I should just head back and drop Musa safely at Alfea._

But he knew why._ Darcy_.

She had this strange hold on him he could not fight. He felt it was his job to obey her. She had even established a mental link with him. (A/N Remember the conversation?) She could track him anywhere, anytime. S_omething like her slave…_ he thought angrily.

Lost in thought, he didn't see Musa's face contort in rage as his rude remark seeped inside her head, making her already boiling blood spill over. She was really mad. Her fists balled up, clenching in rage. Then without any hesitation, she pummeled her fist into Riven's stomach.

He doubled over with a groan, clutching his stomach.

Musa saw her opportunity and took it. She jumped on the bike with one quick movement and worked up the handle like she had seen Layla do once. The bike started moving, her heart skipped. She moved the handle to avoid a tree, trying to rise up, but with no success.

Riven heard the sound of his bike, he was nearly numb with disbelief. First she punched him, now this! He thought, as Musa narrowly avoided missing a tree. Musa swore as she slowly gained height. This was scary.

"Come down this instant, dumb fairy!" he was angry and worried at the same time. _Worried about his bike_, he assured himself.

.Musa just kept soaring skywards. She tried to shift in order to change the bike's angle but she didn't know how. _Oh god, go straight, go straight!_ She told the bike as if it could hear her. Her hand gripped the handle tightly till her knuckles turned white. _Stupid, stupid, stupid! _She cursed herself. _If only Riven were here, he'd hold me and tell me its okay. _She thought, as she remembered his warm arm around her and shivered.

She was sure he was angry with her. She was stealing his bike, after all. She once remembered hearing a rumor about him threatening to kill a boy for _touching_ it once. _I wonder what he'll do to me. _She planned to return it, of cause_. If the bike and I get through this_. She hazarded a look downwards. She saw Riven running, trying to catch up with the bike. She couldn't see the expression on his face, but he was yelling. At her.

She suddenly had an urge to jump. _Would he be able to catch her? _She wondered. She felt dizzy just looking down. _Would he want to? What would happen to the bike if she did? This bike means more to him than anything, she knew. _She decided she couldn't jump. Besides, she was gaining altitude at an alarming rate now. She tried once again to lower the bike, beginning to feel dizzy. It became harder to breathe. Her teeth chattered, out of fear and cold. She felt like hurling, too. Her head became lighter and lighter. She was going to pass out, she just knew that…

"Come down! You'll hurt yourself!" he was only worried now. He could see her face lose its colour as she moved upwards.

Riven knew she would be in trouble. He did the only think he thought could save Musa. He called Darcy through the mental link.

(Mental Conversation)

"Darcy!"

_Ah finally!_

"Darcy, I need your help! The fairy is escaping. She has taken my bike and made a run for it!"

_Be right there_

Darcy sighed exasperatedly. Putting Riven on the job, she had thought there would be no mistakes. _Again, I have underestimated my Puppy Dog she_ thought.

Reluctantly, she approached her sisters.

"We have a problem"

They looked up.

"Let me guess…"said Icy, coldly, tapping her finger on her chin cockily. "Its something to do with that loser boyfriend of yours…"

"Musa is escaping" she cut her off.

"Let's go"

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Aurhor's note: I would now like to thank all my reviewers…DayDreamer9, Lunariagirl33, WinxClubRox, Starlit Phantomess, Dreamergirl92813 and Cherryll. 

look i made some changes: )


	9. Darcy Betrayed

Disclaimer: I do not own Winx Club, if I did, there would be no Bloom. Or pixies. Or their stupid pets. And the whole thing would be based on Musa and Riven. Thus the pen name.

Please, please let me know where I can improve. If you think the story drags on and on at a tiresome pace, that's the kind of writer I am. Honestly, I hate to end stories. I go on and on and on, or else end abruptly. Oh, and if you have a suggestion as to where the story should go, please tell me. I don't know myself!

* * *

The three witches flew out of Cloud Tower. Rain pelted them as they flew, drenching them from head to toe. Icy growled. She hated water. As they gained altitude, Stormy was the first to spot her. They flew towards the musical fairy, who seemed to be barely holding on to the spiraling levi-bike.

"Looks like she's already in trouble" laughed Stormy.

Darcy spotted Riven below and flew down to him. "What happened?" she asked, her tone embedded with rage.

But that didn't stop her from observing his rain-soaked body. His magenta hair plastered to his face, raindrops were rolling down his profile. His British shirt was completely soaked (A/N: sorry guys! I forgot to mention that he wore his clothes before he got on to the bike with Musa!) In the rain, he looked like a god to Darcy, which was strange as she was an atheist.

"She punched me, and then grabbed the bike and made a run for it…" he muttered, not looking at her. Secretly, he knew he wanted her to get away, and if he had tried harder, he might just have caught her before she could get away. He hated the fact that his emotions had affected his judgment. '_Maybe she'd have been safer if I had caught her'_ he thought.

"Got to go" Darcy took to the sky to rejoin her sisters. Riven anxiously looked up to see the three witches encircling Musa. He felt horrible.

Darcy was eyeing Musa beadily.

Darcy then glanced down to where Riven was standing. His head was raised heavenwards, and concern, anxiety and rain water lined his face. _He's worried about Musa,_ she thought angrily. _That's the only reason he called me here._

She connected her mind to Riven's again.

(Mental Conversation)

"_What's up? You look worried" she snarled_

_Its… it's my bike _he lied, though in a way it was partially true.

"Don't you worry, baby, nothing's going to happen to it"

"What do we do to her?" asked Stormy, addressing Darcy impatiently. She had come up with the plan, after all and she had been glaring at the escalating fairy for quite a while now.

Smirking, she pulled a now unconscious Musa out of the driver's seat, and placed her into Stormy's arms and sat down on the bike and steered it around, hovering in mid air.

"Wait! She's too heavy!" Stormy cried as Musa's weight made her decent alarmingly before Icy helped her.

"We can't hold on to her!" yelled Icy, grinding her teeth in frustration. The rain was giving her a migraine.

Darcy was frustrated. She had to bring the bike back to her boyfriend. Her sisters could not hold the fairy. The bike couldn't stand in mid-air, and even if it could, she didn't know how to make it. Finally, she hit upon the only solution. She would take Musa down with the bike and the three would finish her on the ground with the new spell they had been dying to try. _Her little experiment, _she thought with some excitement._ One sure-fire way to get rid of the musical bitch._ Later, they could get something to eat while Riven and her made love in the rain. She had always wanted to do that.

Darcy signaled them towards bike's seat. But when they put Musa on it, she just fell off as she was unconscious.

Darcy sighed. She had been fantasizing so much about the making love in the rain, she just wanted to get back on the ground right now, go back to Riven and away from her sisters.

"Let her fall" she said, dismissively as the witches looked down at Musa drop steadily into the dense forest. She has minimal chance of survival anyway. She imagined the unconscious fairy plunging down to her death and suffering broken bones and bleeding gashes before she died. Maybe it was better this way, she consoled herself. After all, she could find another victim, maybe even Bloom…

_This way, I can get back to Riven faster_, she thought, lustfully, as the bike began to descend. Her sisters followed her, laughing maniacally. But as they came closer to the ground, Darcy's wicked smile began to fade. It turned into a scowl as the bike reached the ground. Riven wasn't there. Landing the bike, Darcy looked around.

"Perhaps…he's waiting inside, it is pretty cold out here" Stormy consoled here sister

"Yes" said a half hearted Darcy. _He better be. _

"Shall we go _in_, then?" said Icy, hopefully. The three witches flew into Cloud Tower, leaving Riven's bike behind in the rain.

Riven jumped out of the bushes immediately after the Trix flew away.

_Excellent_ he thought. _I hoped they would leave this behind_. His temporary enthusiasm faded as he remembered he had a fairy to save.

He hopped on the bike, and began to zoomed towards the spot he had seen her fall into. _I hope she is okay, I hope she is okay…. I hope she is okay….. _He repeated over and over againin his mind.

As he found himself in the denser part of the jungle the raised the altitude just a little bit to avoid the dense undergrowth.

-‡‡‡‡‡-

"He's not here!" Darcy was having an anger fit. She was so mad at him. "He's gone out to with that Musa idiot I'm sure! God! We should have just killed her!"

"It was your plan, you know" Icy said as she took a bit of her chocolate bar.

"Shut up! Both of you…" There was an uneasy silence for a while, then…

"I'm going to look for him" She said. She was not happy. She was angry and hurt; she would find Riven and make him pay.

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Author's note: I thank all my frequent reviewers and ask them to review once more…. but for this chapter, I want **only criticism. **Please, say something bad…. if it wasn't up to the mark, boring, language, grammar, dialogue, spellings, errors (if any) anything. I know its weird, but do it anyway if you really want you can add positive comments, too but 'flames' are essential (by now, I'm guessing they mean 'bad reviews') . Only for this chapter, you can be nice on the other ones ; ). (Mostly because I think this is the worse chapter yet) also tell me what you didn't like about the story. Right from Riven's boxers to Darcy being in the story to the 'foul' language. Each and every suggestion will be taken into consideration! 


	10. How Darcy Met Riven

Hi all! I'm sorry I took so long. Had no time with the computer lately, but I have written quite a lot, though not enough (apparently, it's never enough!) but I hope you'll enjoy anyway. Here goes!

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**This review is from DayDreamer9**

"Actually, this is pretty good I like Musa and her pairing with Riven, I hope they're together now XD But wait...**what was Darcy gonna do to her? She kept mentioning experiment...UPDATE SOON!"**

**Reply to above review. (Basically a summary)**

Darcy and her sisters had this super powerful curse and they were planning to use it on someone, so Darcy tells Riven to find someone. She doesn't tell Riven about the curse, but says she needs someone for her 'experiment' but Riven totally forgets about it. when Darcy sees them both at the lake, she presumes Musa is her 'subject' but when Riven falters, she knows that he's forgotten about it, but thinks Musa will do nicely, especially since she and Riven had something going on. She tells Riven to "intoxicate" Musa and bring her to Cloud Tower where her sisters and she will be waiting.

When Riven calls her and tells her that Musa is escaping, her sisters and her rush to the place and Darcy removes Musa from the bike and gives her to Stormy. But Stormy and Icy together can't hold Musa (that also explains why Darcy didn't just pick Musa up and take her to Cloud Tower) when Darcy tells them to put her on the bike. Darcy meanwhile is thinking about Riven, wants to get down to firm ground to be with him, and decides that right now, the experiment is not important anymore and all she needs is riven. She calls a rain check on the 'experiment' that is also a spell, thinking that they might find another candidate for it later, like Bloom. She just lets Musa fall into the jungle.

However, she is greeted by a nasty surprise once she reaches the ground. Riven wasn't there! Darcy throws a temper tantrum when she goes inside and confirms that her 'Puppy Dog' has 'betrayed' her and gone to find Musa. She sets out to go and find him. Riven takes his bike back and goes to find Musa. The rest is here and in the following chapters...

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The rain was still persistent. Riven shivered as unwanted thoughts touched his mind. He pushed the bike to maximum speed as he made his way to the spot. _What if she doesn't make it…what if she bleeding… what if I can't find her… _he ground his teeth, pushing back terrifying images of a possibly hurt and bleeding fairy… or worse, of a cold, stiff and motionless one… 

"Damn it!" a roar escaped him as he fought back the images with frustration. "Where are you, Musa?"

◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊

Darcy flew, unconstrained by the rain. She had already tried to contact Riven 'mentally' as she had done before, but it wasn't working. _He's got rid of the spell I put on him!_ She was going to find Riven, and give him a piece of her mind. _And if he's lucky, and feels suitably guilty, maybe he'll even get lucky tonight_, Darcy could not help thinking.

She was surprised at how lenient she was being with him. If it were anyone else in his place, she'd have sent them to hell right now. However, with Riven it was different. She'd always felt the need to impress him, even if she had him under a spell. The other casual boyfriends she had would slobber all over her, telling her how beautiful she was and telling her that he was the luckiest man in the world (Magix in this case) to be with her. They'd suck up to her, flatter her give her expensive gifts and call her every minute of the day.

Then there were the downright perverts. In fact, if not for one of them, she'd have never met Riven.

**FLASHBACK**

"Let me go!"

"Come on honey…listen to me …I was just..."

"Feeling me up, yes I know"

No! You don't understand!" he cried desperately, and grabbed her arm roughly.

Darcy was going to zap him with her powers right then, but a haughty voice suddenly stopped her.

"Leave her alone, dweeb"

One sentence. Just a four-lined sentence to make her melt. A very un-Darcyish feeling, she knew. Right then and there, she knew who she wanted. It was him, Riven.

"You alright, Darcy?" he asked with mock concern.

"Don't you worry about me..." She said. She then grabbed his hands and gazed directly and intensely into his deep, smoky cobalt eyes. He stood there transfixed by her warm brown ones, with the slightest tinge of gold.

Finally, he spoke. "But I do" he said, hands reaching up to cup her cheek "I do worry about you, darling..."

Darcy smiled triumphantly. The hypno-spell had worked. Riven had asked her out that very day.

**END OF FLASHBACK**

_That was a week ago_. Darcy couldn't believe it had only been a week. In one week, Riven had completely changed her perception about men. She thought of men as clingy, creepy parasites who could not stand on their own to feet without help. As spineless beasts with no character, no attitude. He had shown her the independent, honorable, arrogant, and sexy side of the masculine species that had increased her overwhelming attraction to him. He had given her reason to look at herself in the mirror everyday. His opinion meant everything to her. She'd dress up the way he liked, go to movies he liked, restaurants... she even cooked for him once!

Her sisters had noticed, of cause. 'Ditch him' was their first advice to her. "You can't have this...liability tying you down"

But Darcy wasn't really to give him up. Not for anything. _Now he has left __**me**_. She thought angrily. _After all that I've gone through for him... _

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Author's Note: You may review now...don't hold back, I love criticism, too. 


	11. Finding Musa

Author's note: My computer is being a real bitch!

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As Musa regained consciousness, she apprehensively observed her surroundings, trying to sit up. Fatigue weighed down on her mind and body as she felt herself beginning to pass out again. She tried to remember how she had got into this mess. _I jumped on Riven's bike... tried to get away... and then... I saw Darcy... and passed out..._ that was all she remembered.

"Magic Winx" she murmured, as she tried to transform. A small bolt of energy passed through her body, generating a tiny sliver of hope. _It was the only way she could stay alive_. Hidden in the forest, beneath the dense undergrowth, it would be a miracle if someone found her soon.

Since she had been unconscious during her fall, unrelenting pain now began to seep into her exhausted body. She clenched her teeth. "Magic Winx!" she repeated once more. She felt the bolt of energy again, but nothing happened. She growled with frustration, as her fatigued body was enveloped in a feeling of agonizing pain. She heard a distant roar of a bike. _I must be delirious_. She though, recognizing the sound. _That sounds like a levi-bike_. _Riven's levi-bike_. She was the fairy of sound and music, after all.

"Damn! Where are you Musa!" he was hardly audible above the roar of the bike, but since he yelled, she heard. _He was searching for her. So Riven actually cared. Or did he?_ Suspicion clouded Musa's mind. He was working for Darcy after all. She sat still, thinking about it. There was a slim chance of anyone finding her. She'd probably die here; alone if he didn't find her now. She heard the bike's engine stop. Riven slickly jumped off his bike. "Musa!" Musa! Where are you?" his voice was apprehensive and uneasy. "Oh Musa..." his voice broke with emotion.

"Riven..." she called out weakly, deciding to finally trust him after some initial hesitation. Her head was spinning, threatening to cause her to pass out again.

◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊

Riven heard his name. He ran towards the voice, calling her name over and over, his anxiety growing at a rapid pace. _Atleast she's alive_ he thought, thankfully. _And she can speak. That's a good sign, right?_

He went down on his knees, seeking Musa. The soft undergrowth served well to reassure him. _She's okay_ he said over and over.

◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊

Darcy watched, seated atop a tree as the desperate specialist searched for Musa. Perhaps I'll watch some drama. She thought as she hung back. In truth, she was reluctant to face Riven. _What would she say to him,_ she wondered, as she gazed longingly at his form shifting aside the undergrowth to find Musa, his chiseled face full of tenderness and anxiety, mixed with a sickening twinge of hope.

◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊

As Riven finally recovered the lost fairy, he almost cried with relief. He held her face and looked into a pair of dazed, clear blue eyes before her weariness finally gave way and she collapsed in his arms.

"Musa… your okay" he hugged her, planting a tender kiss on her forehead. Musa, _**his**_ Musa was okay. He cradled her in his arms, trying to remind himself that she still needed medical help. But sitting here, with her, in the secluded spot (A/N: he thought!) just made him feel so content, satisfied and blissful he did not feel like moving.

He rocked her gently and; assured with the knowledge she was oblivious of his actions traced her face with his hands. It was wet from the downpour. Her chalky white skin caused his heart to flutter, as strange, protective emotions were roused within him. Her naive eyes remained closed, her lashes speckled with raindrops. Supple, baby pink lips tempted him, until it became a mental agony not to bend down and kiss them.

"No wonder guys can't resist you" he whispered, under his breadth. "I never wanted to hurt you, Musa" he continued, earnestly as his large hand slowly moved toward her lips. His face moved closer to hers, his breadth warming her face. He drew away, almost suddenly.

"I could kiss you right now…" he informed an ignorant fairy. "But I won't… unless I know it's what you want"

He then shook his head to clear the mist and carried her to his levi-bike. Placing her small frame on his lap, he held on to her with his free hand and drove to Alfea.


	12. Darcy's Defeat

**Hey! Sorry for that long delay….internet problems as usual. So its extra long now…enjoy and review! My college has started and its gonna be long time before there's another update!**

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Darcy watched silently as Riven sped off, holding Musa. She made no attempt to stop him, and no longer had a desire to. The scene she had witnessed, the one between Riven and Musa, were enough to convince her he was never coming back to her, spell or no spell. She had never seen Riven act the way he had today. So protective, loving and tender…

Even her strongest love spell hadn't been able to evoke such feelings in him for her. _He was never mine, anyway, _she reasoned, surprised at herself as she only felt a tiny twinge of jealousy, instead of being consumed by it.

_He deserves Musa._ The thought sent a blaze of contempt for herself through her. She was behaving like a total wuss! This was not who she was! If she was 'who she was', she wouldn't have let the couple speed away, instead she'd have killed Riven, and then Musa, right then and there. But the spectacular love scene had gripped her cold heart and broken through all the ice. _Riven would never treat her like this girl_. Even during the intense, passionate moments they shared, she could see uncertainty and doubt in those azure blue eyes, and it was slowly eating her up inside.

_He loved Musa_. She knew that now, even then she knew she would always be hopelessly attracted to the specialist, and would always want him, the fact was clearer to her than anything she had believed before.

She stood up and flew towards Cloud Tower, the recently discovered facts buzzing in her head, causing a single, crystal tear in the witch's eyes.

♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫

As Alfea loomed in the distance, Riven began to feel a little uneasy. _What would he do now?__He planned to take her to Alfea, yes, but how? What would he say after handing Musa over to Olfea?_ They would demand an explanation.

_What would he say?_ His record had never been clean, in any case, but this would drive it over the edge. He wondered what they would think. It didn't take a lot of wondering. A bad-boy with a murky past bringing back a bruised hammered up and injured fairy, that too, in the middle of a rainy, shadowy night. And they won't be so far of the mark. If they tried one of their damn 'expose' spells, they would reveal traces of him all over her.

Then, he'd go to jail on 'rape' charges. _He knew how jail was. It was not fun, that he was certain. Would Musa back him up on this one? He had been a prick to her, but he hadn't done anything illegal, after all, had he? Then again, taking someone somewhere they didn't want to go __**was**__ illegal, right?_

Darcy's spell or not, he wouldn't be let off easy. Yet he could not disagree with it his decision – he would take Musa to Alfea and deliver her there. No matter what.

♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪

She had opened her eyes, and found herself alone in the room. She looked down at her body, scarred and bruised. It still hurt.

"_This couldn't have happening to me…_" she cried.

She was alone, with nothing but a candle for company, a candle, which burnt brightly for only those blessed with light in their lives….and she was no longer one of them.

"Stupid Darcy!" she yelled, but the only response she evoked were the dull rumbling of thunder outside her window, as the rain increased to an incessant downpour.

Her mind unwillingly returned to the turn of events that day that had lead to her misfortune. Riven. The mere thought of him brought out an angry growl.

_He's the one who caused all this, everything…._

A fat tear slid down her cheek. She had been so foolish. She had fallen for a man who had ended up betraying her, taking advantage of her, laughing at her to her face, and bringing her to the Trix had used her as an 'experiment'. She was scarred and bruised everywhere.

She remembered the unbearable pain as her body collided against the forest's thick floor. Darcy's cold cruel laugh cut through her heart like a dagger. She remembered Riven bending down, examining her, not saying a word. She had lost consciousness then, but she could still feel his eyes on hers…

A clap of thunder coincided with the hospital door being thrown open by her friends. She knew it was them before as she could identify them by their footsteps. Being the fairy of sound and music had its benefits.

"Oh Musa! You're finally awake!!!" said Flora. She had been crying continuously after she had heard the news. It was so horrible and shocking.

"If only we had been there!" Bloom sobbed for the hundredth time.

Musa opened her mouth to offer condolence, but closed it. '_It's true_' she thought to herself. '_They should have been there_."

Musa made a face and turned away from her friends. _Friends_, she thought bitterly. _Some friends they were._ They had been too busy with their boyfriends. It had been happening a lot lately. Even Layla no longer had time for her.

_Serves them right _she thought

She glared at her friends, the silence in the room uneasy and painful.

"SO WHAT HAPPENED?" they all blurted out at the same time. Usually, this would have provoked a fit of laughter, but only manage to encourage a ditzy blonde to titter.

No one said anything. "WELL…?" asked Musa. What happened to me?" _The last time I checked, I was in the jungle, with Riven leaning over me… _a faint blush crept up her cheeks.

"You've been out for two hours" Layla informed her, as if she was telling her she'd prefer the vanilla to the chocolate flavour in her ice cream.

"And….?" What_ did they want her to do? Beg?_

"We're sorry….? " Flora offered sheepishly.

"Damn you guys! What HAPPENED to me?"

"You mean you don't know?" Tecna's eyes widened **"We** were hoping _you_ would be able to tell _us_!"

"NO! I **was** unconscious _remember_?" why _were they acting so dumb?_

"Well…. this is how we found you… in your room…" contributed Bloom.

"What but Riven… Darcy?"

"RIVEN?" Stella was interested now.

_They didn't __**know**__? Anything? _

"No… nothing…it must have been a bad dream…" she wouldn't tell them. They didn't deserve to know.

"A dream!" Stella said incredulously "**Oh…** is that why you're bruised and injured? **Huh**?"

Musa looked away.

"Musa", said Flora, tears still brimming in her eyes "If Riven did this, we gotta report it right away…"

She wouldn't get riven into trouble. She shook her head. "Nothing…you guys…can you leave me alone now? I would like to rest…" it was the only excuse she could think of.

"Oh…sure…" Bloom stood up gingerly. The others followed her tentatively, Stella left last, after everything else. She hung back at the door, and looked backed at Musa with a serious expression on her face.

"I know you just wanna protect him" she said gently. She paused, voice faltering slightly "I would have done the same for Brandon… but not at _your_ expense okay?"

Musa nodded mutely, thoughts buzzing through her head as Stella quietly closed the door and left. How had she ended up here? Could it all possibly be a strange, bizarre dream? But then... what about her injuries… millions thoughts ran through her head slowly died away, and she dozed off.

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How did Musa get back? Find out in the next chapter… 


	13. Why Riven and Technology Don't Mix

**Why Riven and Technology Don't Mix.**

Disclaimer: I don't own Winx, Riven, Musa, Tecna, Timmy, or orkut, but I do own the annoying voice on the telephone. Don't you dare steal it! And also the Riven Elementarian (community on orkut).

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Looking back, Riven almost snorted at himself with indignation. _Was he a thief or some kind of pansy? Hadn't he learnt enough on the streets to help him find a solution to this simple problem? Why was he worrying so much?_

In the end, it had been all too easy. He had taken Musa to Alfea, yes, but not straight to the bumbling nurse.

FLASHBACK

He stopped the bike beside her dorm room's window (A/N: he knew which room was her's for undeclared reasons…use your imagination!) Using light-fingered skills he had not completely lost, he unlatched the great big window and with one, fluid movement jumped inside the dorm noiselessly, holding Musa against him.

He entered her and Tecna's room, carrying her silently to her bed, and laid her down. Trying to resist the temptation to tuck her freezing body under the covers, he looked down to look at the whole length of her, lying innocently against the sheets. _Then he realized there was nothing more he wanted to do than slip in beside her, put his arms around her waist and pull her close to him_.

He just stood there, transfixed at the sight of her; she was so child-like in everyway, right from her clothes, hair, behavior to her face, eyes and lips. _Which were now caked with drying mud_.

He groaned, (then realized he had to be silent and groaned again) and bent down, tentatively brushing mud off her face, revealing the chalk-white skin that had earlier caused butterflies in his stomach, catching his breadth. His heart began to thump erratically as he moved close to her fresh, mud-free lips. _Do it!_ The voice in his head grew louder, and his heart beat faster, until it actually hurt. He grabbed his chest, the new emotions running through him like a streak of lightning. And for the first time in his life, Riven was really, actually scared. He had been frightened before of cause, as a small boy, and later on, but never like this.

_Get out of there! _

_**Do it now! **_

_You want more of your marks on her?!_

_**When will you get another chance! **_

There were two voices in his head now. He made up his mind, trying to breathe normally, shaking madly as he moved closer to her. His hand swept across her grubby face. _I want to kiss her. I want to kiss her…_ he was a hair's length away from her when his hand contact with…blood. It was thick and partially coagulated, running down, steadily down her left temple. Riven cursed himself and withdrew his hand hurriedly.

_**Pig**_. It was the most appropriate word he could find to use on himself at the moment. _Selfish, filthy, perverted pig!_ _That's what your are… Riven Elementarian! _He told himself. She could die and you'd still want to kiss her! Get the hell out of here! Now!

He stumbled out of the room, almost knocking down her Discman and almost forgetting the final and most important part of his plan. He hurriedly rushed towards Tecna's bedside, fumbling for her cell phone. With slippery fingers, he opened it.

PASSWORD.

The word glared at him mercilessly.

'timmy'

He typed the words without doubt, almost confidently. But turned out he didn't know her that well. He clenched his teeth, knowing Musa was losing more blood.

'digit' ,'tecna' ,'alfea' he tried three more.

It still didn't work.

'riven' it was a half-hearted attempt.

PASSWORD ACCEPTED…WELCOME.

_WHAT?_ He thought, as he stared at the cell phone's screen for a whole minute. _Not Tecna too!_ But he didn't have time to be surprised, Musa's life were in his hands. He worked as fast as he could… there could be no errors. He first un-muted the cell phone, it was in viberator mode.

He then went to the Settings… Alarm Clock. He checked his watch… it was already 11:50 PM. He set the alarm to 12.

"_AM or PM?"_ a mechanical voice enquired, failing to understand the seriousness of the situation and the need for it to be silent.

_This phone talks?_ He wondered, incredulously. Cursing himself for un-muting the phone, he covered the speakerphone with his thumb, biting his lip nervously. Luckily, Tecna was a sound sleeper.

"AM or PM?" he wondered. He had never been good at math. Was mid night an AM or PM?!

He pressed the back button it was now 11: 57 on his watch. He set the phone to 11:59. _"AM or PM?"_ the same damn mechanical voice enquired. Riven made a silent pledge to kill whom ever invented the cell phone. He pressed PM.

"_Would you like to set the alarm before, on or-"_

"On" he whispered. _If it talked, then it could also hear right?_

"I'm sorry…I didn't get y-"

Riven scrolled down to 'on' and punched 'yes' murderously.

"Your alarm has been set" Tecna stirred. The only thing stopping Riven from throwing the cell phone against the floor and jumping on it until it broke into a million pieces was Musa.

Setting the cell phone back on the bedside table, Riven realized his wet, muddy prints were all over the place. With a frustrated groan, he checked his watch. 11:58. Walking up to the desk, he grabbed a spare newspaper and rubbed off the end of his shoe. He then began wiping off his footprints. He was pleased with the outcome. The floor was spick and span, as if no one had been there. He crushed up the paper into a tiny ball and threw it into the wastepaper basket.

Knowing the alarm could go off any second now, he swiftly jumped on to the window sill, when his sharp eye caught a sky-blue round, old-fashioned Chinese alarm clock innocently standing right there, mocking him.

Tearing his eyes away, he moved to the other side of the window and re-latched it. With the skill of an acrobat, he leapt onto the bike. He gripped the handle, trying to start the bike as soundlessly as possible before he and sped away, hearing the alarm ringing inside the room grow fainter as he put distance between himself and the beloved fairy (tring-tring-tring- wake up please!)

END OF FLASHBACK

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The Winx Club site says he comes from the planet Elemental, and therefore his last name is Riven Elementarian.

For those dedicated Musa-Riven fans like me… don't worry, this doesn't end up a Tecna-Riven crossover.

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**Extra Note** Also check out my community on  . I also made a community for Riven called Riven Elementarian…. check it out! And if you add me as a friend on orkut, please scrap me first.

The Riven- cellphone thing is the same way I feel when I hurriedly try to call someone during an emergency! Maybe it's just my outdated, old, retro Sony Ericcson phone that is the problem….but it certainly doesn't talk!

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**Author's note:** Hey guys! I want to know what you think of the chapter. To be honest, I had a lot of fun writing it, but after I read it, it didn't seem too great. Maybe its one of those things that are fun only at the first reading. Please review if you have the time, it would mean a lot to me! Here are few points to help you review.( I know it sounds like a passage from a textbook!)

Should this have been before chapter 12? Not as a flashback?

Did you like the way I tortured Riven?

Do you think it was a tad bit overdone?

What about the tecna-using-riven's name- as-a-password thing? What do you think about that?

I'm sure you guys are riled that Riven hasn't voluntarily kissed Musa yet (the Darcy 'intoxication' thing doesn't count) are you?

Any suggestions?


	14. After Riven Left

**At 12 Midnight, Alfea, After Riven left.**

"Tring-tring-tring- wake up please"

Despite the polite message, there was nothing friendly about the voice; it was more a command than a request. Tecna thought as she stirred, grumbling about the fact that it was inconveniently waking her up. Her senses told her it was the wrong time, as she stumbled towards the phone and turned it off.

_Something was wrong_. Now fully awake, the fairy if technology sensed a perturbed silent in the room. Rubbing her eyes, she reached for the light switch, fumbling against the wall. She finally found it and flicked it on, warily looking around the room.

Her sharp eyes detected Musa, lying in her bed. Oh good she's back…but there was certainly nothing good about her condition. Tecna ran to her roommate, and checking her pulse, found it was stable. Sighing with relief, she dashed to Olfea's office, to inform her that Musa was in need of immediate medical attention.

☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼

"Achoo!" Riven sneezed.

He had caught a bad cold after the night of the 'experiment'. He wondered how Musa was holding up. And if she had spilt the beans yet. He had come to accept that his plan wasn't foolproof, after all. Although her memory of that night was distorted and unclear, she would certainly remember the involvement of the witches and him in her little 'mishap'.

There was an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach that the Alfea police might just come and escort him to prison anytime. Red Fountain was a hellhole by itself, but jail was a lot worse, he knew from experience. He was also troubled about Musa. The girls were meeting the guys that day. He watched his friends as they ran around, deciding what to wear and how much to wear. Watching the specialists dart around aimlessly, with an excited flush on their faces, made him jealous.

He would never admit that aloud to anyone, but he wanted that. The clothes, the presents - bought and received, the sweet hugs and kisses, the cute nothings they would murmur in each other's ears on the beach, while they watched the tide coming in. he wanted it all. With Musa.

All his life, he had been deprived of love. His mother had left him in the hands of a dispassionate, hard and uncaring man, who had never shown any consideration for the five-year-old boy. An unemotional workalcholic, he had provided Riven with whatever he wanted, except love. This had affected Riven significantly, until he couldn't take anymore. One day, he had packed all his things and left home, and taken all his father's money with him. The police caught him the very next day, his father was furious. He took back all his money, and, disowning Riven left him on the streets to fend for himself. Riven had adapted surprisingly well to living on the streets, drugs, alcohol, prostitutes, he had tried everything….

"Achoo!" another sneeze escaped his lips, spraying spit all over a disapproving Helia, who was approaching Riven, a mug of steaming brew in his hands.

Without an apology, he eyed him suspiciously "What did you want?" he enquired, rudely.

Helia rubbed his face "Here. This will make you feel better"

Riven grudgingly took a sip of the tea. It tasted horrible. He spat it all over Helia. This time, he did apologize.

"Sorry" he said, arms raised in surrender.

Helia regarded Riven cautiously "Riven…" he began.

Riven had a sinking feeling in his stomach.

"I talked to Flora..." He continued, tentatively.

Riven cut him off. "Look lover boy, what goes on between you and that floral freak doesn't concern me…"

Helia cringed a little, but managed to add, "It's about Musa." He ended, abruptly.

Riven's face remained impassive. "Fine", he gave in. "what is it? Did something happen to her?"

"Funny you should ask…matter of fact; something _did_ happen to her…" Riven held his breadth. "Tecna woke up to find her bruised, scarred and bleeding. The bleeding has stopped, but she's still in bad shape." Riven let out his breadth with a whoosh. So they didn't know "And?" he asked nonchalantly, compared to how he was feeling.

"We don't know what happened" worry lined his face. "She won't talk to them. They had a fight about…boyfriends (Riven's heart flipped) she did mention your name, though and **we** (he pointed towards the specialists, now fully dressed and examining themselves in the mirror) and the fairies were wondering… we'd like to ask a favour from you"

"From me?" his brow raised incredulously.

"Yes" Helia hesitated.

Prince Sky, as usual intervened. "We need you to talk to Musa"

"About?"

"You know…what happened…who caused it and stuff… so we can report it" joined in Timmy, hurriedly.

_Talk about ironical twist_, thought Riven, as he decided what to say to them. _Say yes_, a little voice in his head _(his conscience?)_ told him. _You will get to see her again_. Could he have asked her a better excuse?

He pretended to think about it. "Do I get anything in return?" He knew he was pushing it, but he did not want to think he had gone soft on them.

Helia shuffled his feet uncomfortably. _This was Riven after all, what did he expect?_ Riven smirked shrewdly.

Helia gave in. "well what do you want?"

There was a triumphant grin in Riven's eye. Helia had an uneasy feeling he had planned this elaborately.

"Your room" he certainly got straight to the point.

There was a collective gasp from the other specialists. But they stayed out of it, as it was not their business anymore.

Helia did not know what to say. Being Saladin's nephew, he was the only one allowed an independent room.

"You can stay in my room, with Timmy" Riven added, seeing the look on Helia's face.

For a moment, Helia was totally unresolved. But Flora had specifically made the request to him, and he could not bear to let her down. He scowled and removed the keys from his pocket "Its all yours, buddy he said, grudgingly. "I'll drop by to collect my stuff later, but _please,_ go see Musa now"

Riven pocketed the keys, feeling a tendril of guilt, but pushed it away. He was the loner, after all. Shouldn't he be the one getting his own room? Helia could always get another later.

"Bye, guys", patting Helia on the back mockingly, he sauntered towards his levi- bike, trying to ignore how nervous he was.

* * *

Author's note : sorry for that long wait before. I have started writting Chapter 15 already! will update by the weekend! 


	15. A Visit to Alfea

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Winx Club. If I did, I'd be flithy rich.

* * *

A/N: I didn't have much time to read this, so please tell me if there are any gapingly large errors, spelling or grammar. Thank you reviewers! Sorry for the long wait!

* * *

"Musa… why won't you tell us what happened?" Bloom screamed, finally losing her cool. 

"Yeah…" added Stella "We're friends remember? We have to share _everything_!"

"Get the hell out of my room! What do I have to do to get some privacy around here?" Musa yelled back.

Flora observed her friends quietly. She had not had a chance to tell them about her recent call from Helia, which confirmed that Riven was on his way.

Tecna shook her head. She had had enough of her roommate. If she wasn't going to spill, that was okay with her.

"Musa..." began Layla tentatively

"I said; get the hell out of my room". With that, Musa transformed. "Sonic blast!" she cried, aiming the spell at all of them, which sent them flying out of her room. She closed the door behind them. "Good riddance!" she panted. Finally, she had them out of her hair.

The girls landed in a pile on top of each other.

"Well, well, well… our Musa certainly has a temper today" Riven Elementarian was leaning against the staircase, looking cockily at the fairies, who immediately got up and began to dust themselves.

"**You** expect **me** to go in **there**? With that _monster_?" despite his words, his tone was amused.

The fairies glared at him. He had caught them at an awkward moment. They all looked ready to transform and kick his ass.

"Okay, okay" he raised his arms in surrender.

"In you go" Layla ushered him to Musa's room. Riven slowly knocked on the door.

"HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO KEEP TELLING YOU? I DON'T REMEMBER!" hollered Musa from her room. "Stupid fairies! If you're so interested, call Riven here and ask him, why don't you?"

The Winx Club smirked at each other; Riven nervously dug his hands into his pockets. _Wow. She was not happy. Not happy at all._ He thought, as his hands dug further into his pockets, fists clenched tensely. "Maybe I'll come back another time" he remarked casually moving away from the door, but the nonchalant effect was lost, as there was a slight edge in his voice.

"Riven is _afraid_?" mocked Stella, sticking her tounge out at him. The others laughed.

Musa, who now had her walkman on, heard a peal of laughter erupt from the other side of the door_. They're making fun of me _she concluded, a tear slid down her cheek, her frustration mounting. I am _leaving Alfea,_ she said to herself, thinking of various revenge strategies to get back at her friends later on. She buried her head in her hands, tears rolling down her cheeks. She had cried so much that day, she wondered if there were any more tears left to cry.

Meanwhile, a hushed and fiery battle was happening on the other side of the door. Riven had not taken well to Stella's comment. He growled and tried to walk away, but Layla blocked the exit. "You ain't going anywhere until you've talked to her" she said, her piercing eyes boring into him harshly.

Riven was feeling terribly uneasy. _Go for it stupid bastard_ he said to himself. _You've come all the way here, for what? Get into her room, talk to her, how hard could it be? And the single room, remember the single room!_

He moved, dream-like towards her door. He was about to knock once again. But before he could, it was flung open by a tear-faced and devastated fairy.

As her head was hung low, looking at the ground, she didn't notice Riven. "I'm going out" she muttered flatly, oblivious to the newcomer. Riven just stood there, face ashen. Musa looked so deplorable, so pitiful, that his heart skipped a beat. _Say something_ he told himself but he couldn't bring himself to say a word.

"Musa…" began Flora tentatively. "Riven's here."

The sentence sent a wave of shock through Musa as she swiftly looked up, and her red, fearful eyes met the nervous specialist's.

_Oh gosh… Riven!_ Musa thought, as she looked down at what she was wearing. An old, faded baggy grey t-shirt, which had one sleeve torn off in the recent fits of anger and had ketchup stains all over it. Under it, she had on a pair of tight, red shorts, more like underwear.

"What…what is he doing here?" her voice was filled with anxiety and fear as she questioned her friends, looking at everyone but Riven.

It hurt Riven that she was directly not looking at him. He finally forced himself to speak up. "We need to talk" he said, almost gently.

"I'm not talking to anyone!" yelled Musa stubbornly. She burst into tears again, ran to her room, slammed the door, and locked it.

"Well, no use trying to get through her…you can go home Riven" said Bloom sighing.

"No…" mumbled Riven, softly but firmly. He was not leaving. For once, he was not thinking about himself. He didn't care about the room anymore. With a moment of hesitation, he knocked on Musa's door again, this time, a little more loudly.

"Musa!" he yelled, trying to keep his voice from breaking with emotion "Musa! Open the door this instant!"

"If it's about your bike, tell me how much the repair charges are and I'll pay them… as soon as I can!" Musa yelled back, leaning against the door, still crying.

"Bike? Repair charges?" enquired Tecna, narrowing her eyes as she glared at him, her face slightly flushed, Riven remembered his name was her password.

"Stay out of it" Riven hissed. It was not advice, it was a threat.

He banged on the door again. "My bike is fine! It's you I am worried about!" he continued, feeling uneasy and vulnerable.

"I haven't told them anything! I won't, I promise..." she whispered softly, so that only Riven, who was leaning against her door, could hear her. "I don't even remember half the stuff that _**did**_ happen…"

_I deserve this_ he thought. He had always been a selfish pig. She would automatically think he had come there to clear his name, so he wouldn't be in any trouble later on. _I am, after all, only here for myself._ _Atleast I was_.

"That why I'm here, you stubborn mule!" he bellowed. "I'm here to tell you what happened! Open the door!"

There was silence at the other end of the door. Riven was about to knock again, when the door slowly opened with a creek. Musa's face cautiously poked out.

"Only you can come in" she said, she eyed Riven directly, surveying him.

Grateful she was putting her trust in him, he stepped inside her room and shut the door behind him.

* * *

Sorry it took so longer. Since my holidays are over, I can no longer find any time to write! But I'll try to update ASAP. Tell me honestly if its boring or if you want me to discontinue (if more than 5 of you think so, I'll seriously consider it) and if you want me to continue, please tell me if I should cut short the story or go on and on. How many chapters would you like approximately? 


	16. Soulmates

**Author's note: ****Wow…I know everyone hates me…but I have no net connection even now! This was posted by a really close friend of mine…so if your successfully reading this, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to her! Thanks Bhavs! Here are 7 chapters continuously for you guys, who have been so patient! (unless she screws up) I may not get my net connection for a month or so, and even when I do, I'll be really busy, so do not keep any expectations from me…**

**Soulmates**

As he turned to face Musa, a pair of blood-shot, sorrowful eyes met his. She gestured him to sit down on her bed. He apprehensively walked towards it and sat down uncomfortably. _Oh god! Riven is in my room! Riven is in my room! But why was he here?_ She wondered.

"So tell me…," she said forlornly "What you want from me?"

"I told you Musa!" he replied earnestly. "I don't want anything from you! I really am here to tell you what happened that night." He felt slightly insulted by her lack of trust.

"You know Riven…I'm not even sure I want to know. Ignorance is bliss, right?" she retorted indignantly. _Might as well give it to him straight. _

He groaned at the cliché. "Come on Musa, aren't you atleast a bit curious?" _Did he still not get it?_ She wondered. _Riven's not so dense!_

"Riven" her eyes met his again, and this time there was something more than tears in them. Anger, he realized. "I know your only here because of your friends, and my friends. They probably gave you a couple of reasonable incentives to come here. They only are madly curious about what happened that night, and you are only here for that stupid reward. I have already assured you I won't tell them that you were involved in any way, okay? I haven't told them anything, anyway, and if you want, I'll leave Darcy's name out of it as well…I remember most of what happened that night and nothing you tell me will make me feel better, so why inform me? I don't care to be honest, I'm leaving Magix."

She hadn't meant to tell him of her plans, but it just kind of slipped out. Riven's eyes widened. "Leaving?" He asked disbelievingly "_**Why**_?" _As if he gave a damn,_ she thought.

She shrugged her shoulders indifferently, pacing about, oblivious to his remorse. "I'm bored here… its time for me to move on, pursue my musical career, y'know?

He wanted to say something, but he felt tongue-tied once again. It always happened with Musa. He had so much to share with her, so much to tell her, so much to confess. But insecurity and his bloody ego always prevented him from doing so.

Noticing his silence, she stopped pacing and turned to him, eyes narrowing as she mistook the distressed look on his face as a sneer.

"Oh come on Riven!" She bawled, "I'm not a coward!"

_This girl is always overreacting!_ "I'm never said…" he began. She cut him off as she continued to babble.

"Magix has never meant much to me, anyway… there's not much to do, and I always find myself alone most of the time, since the girls are always out with their _boyfriends_...I'm sure no one would even notice if I left!" she exclaimed.

"I…I would" as soon as the words were out of his mouth, he regretted it. It was not his place to prevent her from going, if she wanted to; he had no right to stop her.

"Of cause you'd notice!" She remarked dispassionately. "I meant no one would _miss_ me…"

Riven stood up. He was tired of hiding it behind his stubbornness, arrogance and ego. He cared about this girl, deeply. He thought he could suppress his feelings for her forever, but he knew he couldn't anymore. She had every right to know that she was all he thought about, dreamt about and the only one he actually cared about and would ever care about.

_She was his soulmate_ he realized, stifling a groan, realizing how corny that sounded. She was so like him, yet totally the opposite. It was like they were made for each other, but it was tactically designed so that neither of them would admit their feelings for each other, as they were just too damn proud and insecure.

He knew Musa liked him, or else she'd never had acted the way she did that night. But the dim-witted pixie was just so darned obstinate and erratic! She'd love you for a minute, then loath you the next. Did he really want to get involved with someone who had more mood-swings than a pregnant woman did? The question brought an image in his mind of Musa with a rounded belly, seven months pregnant and himself, holding her. He was astonished at himself for thinking so much into the future, when he had not even made a move yet!

_I want this_, he assured himself, trying to summon up the pent-up courage stored within the depth of his soul. _I want Musa. I want a life with her, to be there when she needs me, I want to live with her, I want a family with her, I want to have kids with her, to protect her from anyone who dares to lay a hand on her, I want her in my life, now and forever. There's nobody else I could ever feel the same way about, and I'm not going to hide it any longer._


	17. Tongue Tied

**Tongue Tied**

Clearing his throat nervously, he walked towards her trembling slightly. He was going to give up his ego right then and there for her. He was going to make the first move, take the initiative to build a relationship. There was a high probability that she would turn him down immediately, for which he wouldn't blame her, considering the way he had treated her before. But if he didn't act now, he'd lose his only chance of true love, true happiness, a true soulmate in his bleak, meaningless life.

"Musa" his voice was shaky and broke with emotion, but it didn't coincide with what he was feeling inside.

Her eyes met his. There were no words spoken, but that moment spoke more for them than they had ever spoken to each other in their entire lifetime.

He cleared his throat and tried again. "Musa…" he was tongue tied again. _Come on! Tell her you miss her and get it over with! _

"_What?!" _there was a touch of impatience in that voice.

He called himself every swear word he could think of. _He was a bloody coward! Why couldn't he opened his mouth and spit out what he was feeling! He had battled packs and packs of ferocious wolves, ogres and trolls before! This should be easy, right? _

"Idmisy" he blurted out, mentally kicking himself hard.

"_What_?" the touch of impatience turned into amusement. "Riven I'm the fairy of sound! If I can't hear you, no one…"

He instinctively grabbed her and silenced her with his lips. The kiss was different from the one they had shared before, it was gentle and warm. He pulled himself closer towards her, confidence rising as she responded to his lips. She too, was reacting differently to him. Her kiss was not timid and pleading, like before, but fiery, passionate and longing. _She wanted him too_, he realized as he chuckled, breaking away for air. "I said I'll miss you" he repeated gruffly. She grabbed his head and kissed him again. Surprised and caught off guard, he fell onto the floor, taking Musa with him.

"I'll miss you too" Musa said giggling as Riven's face clouded over with worry until he caught the teasing note in her voice and played along.

"So when are you _finally_ leaving?" he asked, rolling her over and climbing on top of her. he trailed little kisses from her cheek to her lips.

"Why…why you asking?" she stammered. His soft lips were driving her crazy, her breadth caught; she couldn't say a word without feeling breathless. It was a new feeling for her.

He looked into her eyes then; his face was like she had seen it the night before. It had no arrogance, no anger, no hatred. The hard angles of his face had softened with passion and affection. _For her_, she realized. This was Riven, the real Riven she had fallen for. He was overprotective, arrogant, defensive, moody, passionate, loving, surly and a loner. His character was so deep and complex; she would never truly understand him.

Nevertheless, she loved every side of him, both positive and negative. He was a blend of everything she had ever wanted in a boy. _And he cares about me, _she thought eyes glazing over. _I knew it from the very beginning, when he kissed me by the lake and Darcy was there…_ her breadth caught again then, but it was not due to Riven's kisses.

She remembered then, the night he had met her at the lake and 'intoxicated' her.

FLASHBACK

"Your not going anywhere, _lover_" he whispered into her ear. His warm breadth made her shiver.

"What…what are you going to do to me?" She asked, as she desperately tried to transform.

"Trying to _change_?" mocked Darcy. "It won't work pixie! Fairies can't transform when they are _intoxicated_…"

END OF FLASHBACK

She pushed Riven away forcefully. "Darcy" she managed to gasp softly.

Riven's eyes were misty and confused. _What was she talking about?_

"Darcy? Here?" he managed to enquire, voice thick and soft. His eyes tried to meet hers, but she wouldn't meet his.

"No" she choked. "You're doing this for Darcy, aren't you? So I can't transform?"

He was totally confused, what in the world was she talking about?

Musa drew herself away from him and stood up. "Riven!" she spat. "Don't play games with me! She was there when we first kissed…remember?"

Riven stood his head, not knowing what to say. _Was Musa so nervous she was blabbering nonsense? _

"Musa" he said, sitting up and taking a deep breadth, trying to gain control of himself "There was no Darcy… and this is our first kiss" but when the words left his mouth, something tugged at his mind, a tiny sliver of memory…

FLASHBACK

When Musa timidly raised her eyes to his, Riven's face was etched with overwhelming emotions. He was no longer wearing the cold mask. He took deep breadths, trying to regain his composure, his breathing ragged and irregular.

"Our first kiss" he said huskily, his voice was heavy with passion. He planted a soft, swift kiss on her lips. He could feel her now. He was in control. The force that made him do those things before was gone. It had been him that had kissed her this time

END OF FLASHBACK

His eyes widened disbelievingly. _Where did that come from?_

Tears that had fallen so freely that day started again. _Why was she the one who always ended up getting hurt?_ Riven was such a jerk! He didn't even remember their first kiss, whereas she couldn't stop thinking about it.

"Musa…" Riven tried to compose himself. His mind was going a mile a minute and he didn't know what to say.

"Riven, please… if you care a damn about me at all, you leave." Her tone was cold and unemotional, like nothing had happened between them at all.

"Musa, I …" _What could he possibly say? She was crying god dammit_!

He hated to see her cry. He wanted so badly to comfort her, but he had never comforted anyone, or been comforted by anyone, so he didn't know how. He didn't even know the reason why she was crying_. Simply because he denied remembering their first, non-existent kiss? What kind of reason was that?_

"I know Darcy's out there, just waiting to kill me! You guys are sick! Go play your dirty tricks on someone else!"

"I've had nothing to do with Darcy since…since that night" he tried to reassure her. He really did. But she wouldn't listen to him.

"Please Riven, go away" she begged him. "I'm leaving anyway. You will never see my face again. Why don't we just leave it at that?"

"But Musa I don't want you to leave!" his face torn with anguish. _Why didn't she get it? He wanted her to stay_. He thought he had made it clear. "What are you talking about?"

"You know very well what I'm talking about!" she yelled.

Riven got up, defeated. He pull her towards him and held her close and whispered in her ear "Fine, I'll leave But promise me one thing okay?"

She shook her head, and tried to pull back. But he wouldn't let her.

"Musa" He continued gently "Look at me…look at me…"

She wouldn't. She kept trying to break away from his grasp. "Leave

me alone…" she whimpered, pleading.

"Look at me, just once" he pleaded softly. As her eyes unwillingly met his, he gave her a soft kiss on the lips. She flinched outwardly, but she was surprised at the tenderness.

"I'll leave… but you stay here. Okay?" _It was a desperate request_. If she didn't want him near her, he had no right to tell her otherwise. He knew she madly loved Magix, and she shouldn't be compelled to leave solely for his sake. He just couldn't help think about the way her lips felt against his, her chaste tongue moving around his with uncertain experience, and how she had shyly responded to him…

_Maybe she wasn't ready for a relationship yet_, he tried to console himself_. She has just gone crazy for a while, but she'll be okay before we know it._

He continued to hold her head in his hands until gradually, she nodded slowly. _Anything to make him leave_.

He opened the door and turned around.

"Bye Musa. I'll call you later okay?" she shook her head, but he just smirked. He walked out and was greeted by a host of fairies, asking how Musa was.


	18. Darcy Returns

**Darcy Returns**

_TWO WEEKS LATER…_

Riven entered the pub, digging his hands into his pockets. He seriously doubted he had enough money for the adequate amount of booze he was craving for. _Oh well_ he said to himself. He had other ways to acquire money, and it was not through the ATM.

He sat down on the bar- stool and eyed the bartender flirtatiously. She was short, with Asian features, chalk white skin and upward slanting eyes. She reminded him of Musa. He growled at himself for thinking about her, yet again. She had been on his mind ever since that stupid kiss in her room. _The kiss that meant nothing_ he told himself, yet another time.

She was not worth it, he had concluded repeatedly. After he had finally left her room that night, he hadn't been able to sleep, so he treated himself to a all-night ride on his bike. He rode through the forests of Alfea, thinking about what had happened. He mentally kicked himself for telling her about how he felt. _Women_ he thought venomously _they're all the same, just like mom… _he growled again. _He was reminiscing once again, like a woman._

"Sir?' the Asian approached him cautiously. "What would you like?"

"Ah…" Riven stretched the word as he made eye contact with her, deciding how to carry out the operation-get-booze-cheap-or-free. "What's a _fine_ thing like you doing in this hellhole?" he raised his eyebrows in mock show of displeasure, smothered with a pinch of his usual, bad-boy charm.

Despite herself, the bartender blushed. She was used to men complimenting her throughout the day, but not one as good-looking as this guy. She bent her head low, so he didn't notice. She continued, undeterred "We have draft beer, margaritas, vodka, whisky…"

"Whisky…clear, beautiful, _delicious_ and exotic…just like you… " he whispered softly, his hand reached up to her face, to push back a lock of hair that had escaped her bun, neatly tied on top of her head. He lifted her chin up, to look at her. The blush crept up from her cheeks to the rest of her face. Feeling flustered, she took an uneasy step backwards, but she could not escape those beautiful azure orbs that transfixed her. She was a prisoner to his charm.

A slow, sly smiled formed on his lips as he realized she was his captive. _You're mine now_. No girl had ever, in his entire lifetime, turned him down. He could have any girl he wanted. _Except Musa._ The thought sent through him a wave of contempt for her, as he remembered calling her the next day after the 'incident'

"Hello?" the voice was Bloom's.

Riven cleared his throat hesitantly. "May I speak to Musa?"

A giggle emitted from the other side of the line. _Stupid girls_ he thought as he waited in hopeful silence, which stretched on and on until it became almost unbearable.

After what seemed like forever, Bloom came back again, sounding sympathetic, something he could not bear. "Uh…Riven, she's not willing to talk…to anyone. But don't lose hope…try again tomorrow. Maybe she'll talk then"

She's not planning to_ leave_ is she?" he hated the desperation that crept into every syllable of the sentence. Why did he even ask? An image of a Musa-less room with a bunch of her friends making excuses for her crept into his mind.

"_Leaving_?" she asked incredulously.

"Never mind…bye tell her to call me back, okay?"

"Yeah, I will thanks"

He'd called ever single day after that, seven days straight. Slowly, the calls came on alternate days, and than they stopped. And now here he was, trying to drink off the depression that clung to his mind like cobwebs. Because of her.

"Will that be a whisky sir?" she asked, voice trembling slightly, feeling nervous.

"Uh-huh… I'll have a whisky, but you see, I have no money on me…"

"No free drinks sir" her voice had lost its nervous edge, becoming strict and firm.

"But see… I can make it up to you''

"There's no need for that…two whiskies, please"

Surprised, he looked towards the left, from where the voice came from. It was Darcy. He scowled. "There was no need for that…I don't need your…charity"

"Just saving the girl from heartbreak" she shot back.

He scowled again and took the drink, complaining.

Darcy was feeling uncomfortable. Just how she'd got the courage to approach him she did not know, but she was here now, buying him a drink._ Just like old times_. She did not know what to say. Riven resumed drinking his whisky silently. An uneasy silence followed.

"So what's going on with you?" the words were out of her mouth mostly due to the lack of conversation.

He cocked his brow. "Wouldn't you like to know?" he enquired, sullenly.

"Um…well how are you and Musa getting along?" His moody attitude was making her blurt out things she never intended to.

He regarded her warily. If there was ever an opportunity to ask her, it was now.


	19. Drunk

**Drunk **

Meanwhile, back at Alfea, Musa got another call. It was from Tecna's phone this time.

"Hello?" she enquire politely.

"Hey this is Kim Lee here, may I speak with Musa?"

Tecna knocked on the door.

"I don't want to talk to Riven!" came the automatic response from the other side of the door.

"It's not Riven! He's stopped calling you, remember? Its some gal called Kim Lee!" Tecna yelled back.

The door was instantly flung open. Tecna, who didn't expect this at all, was sent flying, and hit the mirror with an _'oof'_.

"Sorry" Musa mumbled apologetically, grabbing the phone.

Kim Lee was her totally, most definitely best friend in the world. They had grown up together and had been inseparable until she had left for Alfea. It had been a tearful and bitter goodbye, and even more so as Kim had been rejected from Alfea.

"Kimmie! Heyyy!" her voice was though she'd had a great week.

"Musa!" came an equally enthusiastic response "You'll never, in a million years, guess where I am right now!"

Musa's heart leapt with anticipation_. Could it be? _"Magix?" she whispered, not daring to believe it.

"YES!" hollered Kim from the other line.

Musa's depression was instantly lifted and she began to jump up and down, yelling at the top of her lungs. Tecna decided it was better to leave the room.

"So where are you? How come you're here? What's been going on with you?" the words tumbled out of Musa's mouth, undaunting and free-flowing. She was just so happy to hear her friend's voice again.

Kim giggled from the other end. "Slow down Musa! I'll tell you everything! I decided to ditch Alfea and try out once, just once for Cloud Tower. And turns out that I fit in perfectly! Right now, I'm working at a place called 'Illusion' it's a pub, bang in front of the main road…you could fly by and see me anytime…we could have a drink or two, huh?"

"I know where it is!" I'll meet you right now if you want!"

"That would be great!"

"Great…I'll be there in less than two minutes!"

She hung up.

"Magic Winx" Musa mumbled, as she transformed into her shiny red costume. She didn't bother to inform her friends; she just flew out of the window and headed to the pub.

She was there in barely two minutes. Kim Lee was standing outside, waiting for her.

They hugged enthusiastically, almost crying for joy.

"I've missed you!" they said together, and laughed.

Kim sat her down in the furthermost and darkest part of the pub, as employees were not allowed to drink during their break. "I'll be right back" she assured Musa, the wink letting her know she was up to some mischief, _probably sneaking out some free booze._

Minutes later, Kim Lee came back, armed with half a dozen bottles of vodka. "Let's celebrate!" she whispered, and raised the bottle to her lips. Musa imitated her, drinking the vodka straight out of the bottle. It created a burning sensation inside her throat, warming it and warding away the depression that had clung like cobwebs to her mind that past week. Head spinning slightly, she tentatively took another deep gulp

On the other side of the pub, Riven was sitting with Darcy. They were both playing a twisted game, both trying to obtain information from each other that either of had no intention of giving.

Darcy desperately wanted to know about how Musa and him were doing, but didn't want to lose her dignity by asking once again, whereas Riven wanted to know if Darcy had been there when Musa and he had 'first kissed', but he wouldn't bruise his ego by asking her straight out. They went on talking in riddles, beating around the bush, waiting for the other to give, as both stubbornly held on to their ego.

"I left my sisters' gang" she finally blurted out, unable to hide the fact from him.

"Oh?" he enquired, disinterested. "Not evil enough for you?"

Darcy shook her head angrily. _When would Riven stop with his cruel, snide remarks? _

"No, I mean I _really _quit. I'm sick and tired of being a part of their twisted and deceitful tricks. I've moved on and I am rigorously practicing yoga now" she retorted, a distinct hint of pride in her voice.

"Cute instructor?" Riven retorted back, raising his eyebrow further. Darcy frowned. He was not being polite. Then again, when was he ever? Wasn't that why she had fallen for him in the first place? There was an awkward pause, then Riven broke the silence. "Can I have a beer?" he asked. She shot an angry glance at him. _"Please?"_ He offered, almost sarcastically. _If she was buying his booze, might take advantage of her_. Her eyes softened. She slapped down a bill in the bartender's hand; now an old, gruff man and asked him for two beers.

Musa nearly fell out her chair when she was done. Kim had had enough sense to know when her friend had had enough. "Let's get out of here, can you walk?" she asked Musa.

Musa stood up, surprisingly rather straight, and nodded. She was not used to drinking so much. She was going to have a nasty hangover in the morning. Kim Lee, who was quite sober even though she had drunk more, put her arm around Musa's shoulders and guided her steadily towards the exit. Then she remembered. Her car keys were still in the staff room. She didn't want to risk flying, as she was only a beginner and Musa was in no condition to fly, anyway. Cursing, she guided Musa towards the other side of the bar, to where she had been serving drinks just an hour ago. Perching Musa on a bar stool, she told Musa "I'll be right back" and fled to the staff room.

Musa was feeling dizzy and nauseous. _I'm never drinking with Kimmie again_ she resolved, staring into space, vaguely listening to the conversations around her.

"Just like old times huh?" _The voice sounded familiar. Why?_

"Yeah, its amazing you have such a good memory" _That voice! She knew that voice! Moody, surly, sarcastic, rude…RIVEN!_


	20. Bar Brawl

**Bar Brawl **

Their eyes met each others' at the same time. He was slow to recognize her, and she him. Once again, there was enough chemistry in their eye contact to blow up a house. Musa's eyes were cloudy and unfocused. She wished like hell that she didn't look as drunk as she was. His eyes met her's with surprise, almost tender longing. But then she saw the owner of the other voice…Darcy. Her blood began to boil again, liquor surged through her, making her feel such hot, intense anger that it scared her. Her face reddened, but not because she was blushing. She would have just sat there otherwise, but the booze had gone to her head. She stood up and briskly walked over to Darcy, earning a few fleeting glances from the crowd.

"Darcy" she hissed, venomously. "Bitch I am going to kill you!"

She did something then, which no fairy had dared to do. She balled up her tiny hand into a fist and punched Darcy straight in the face. Blood was everywhere. She had broken Darcy's nose.

"Ow" was all she managed to cry before Musa's other fist collided with her face again, smashing her square-rimmed glasses. A crowd had gathered around the trio, some cheering for a catfight.

Riven was a little late to react, but he grabbed Musa's hand before she could land another punch at Darcy's face.

"Stop" he hissed "That's quite enough!"

"Don't you dare take him away from me again!" she screeched, shooting daggers at Darcy with her eyes. Riven was holding both Musa's hands back with his own. Tears rolled down Musa's face. Noticing them, Riven loosened his grip over her wrists. It was not a wise move. Suddenly, Musa had freed her hands and pushed Riven to the ground, pinning him down and punching him as hard as she could. "Hey babe, be that crazy about me and I'll do anything…" hollered the old bartender from his place. There were mumbles of consent and shouts of "What's he got that I haven't?"

Feeling awkward at the attention of the crowd, Riven tried to get up, but he would be damned if he was going to hurt Musa by pushing her off him, as the only way to get her off was by pushing her away violently. He felt exposed and self conscious in front of the conspicuous eyes of the crowd that had gathered there, and it didn't help that a girl was beating him up in front of everyone. _Nothing better to bruise your ego_ he thought.

The rhythmic pounding of her fists was almost soothing, in fact, like a massage. He looked into her face then, she was crying. "I hate you" she mumbled, over and over somewhat incoherently, still punching him. He tried to hold her fists, but decided against it. He didn't mind her venting her rage out on him. It was okay just to see her, have her close and feel her touch him. "I hate you" she repeated "Because you hate me"

_How could she think that? He wondered. She wasn't stupid. He had even directly told her how much he cared about her. What else did she want? A hallmark card that confessed his love? _

"How can you say that?" he asked her, trying to lock eyes with her, but her eyes were unfocused and red. "I called you every week!"

"You hate me…" she continued, undaunted. But she had stopped punching him now, all energy drained out of her. She was slumped on his chest, almost lying on top of him "You stopped calling"

Musa was not making any sense, as always. Tears were falling freely from her eyes now, falling on his face. She reached up and wiped them away. "I never stopped caring about you" he said, gently. He lifted her off him then, and put her on his lap, bundled her up, and put his arms around her.

"Musa stop crying" he begged her hoarsely.

Darcy was trying to stand up, but all she could see was red. It was her blood, she realized with horror, as she found her nose bleeding and pieces of glass from her broken glasses scraping at her face. Hearing the commotion, Kim ran out. "Oh my god..." she groaned, rushing to Darcy.

"Okay people…" Kim Lee addressed the crowd. "Nothing to see here…move along…" the crowd dispersed reluctantly. The fighting was over, anyway.

"Why won't you admit we kissed that time then?" she asked him, through sobs.

"Because we didn't!" he said. _Why didn't she get that?_

"I can answer that…" came a feeble response from Darcy.

An awkward silence followed. Musa glared at Darcy coldly. "Well?"

"Um... Ya, well…" Darcy couldn't help feel a bit embarrassed. She was an all new person, now. _But she had to say something. They were having problems, because of her. However much she was in love with Riven, she wanted him to be with Musa, as she knew he loved Musa, and not her. _

Riven was interested now, too. "Spit it out women!" he said, words tumbling on top of each other.

"Well…um…I was there the night you guys…kissed because…"

"No you weren't!" Riven cut her off. "I know I have a bad memory, but I wouldn't forget a thing like that…"

"Let me finish!" Darcy snapped, sounding more like her old self.

"I was _using_ Riven; I had him under a _spell_…so he would do my _bidding… _that's why he doesn't remember anything…"

"Why would you put this creep under your spell?" Kim Lee asked, glaring at Riven. She didn't like the way he was still holding Musa, and the way she was letting him. He had just been flirting with her an hour ago, after all.

"Well… I _am_ a witch, and I have the power of illusion, so I could. My sisters and I used to play dirty tricks on people, and I was simply playing one on Musa, planning an 'experiment' if you will"

Everything seemed so clear to Musa now. _The reason Riven had the cold mask on that night…the way he seemed to be fighting for control… the fact that Darcy was there…it was all coming together now, making some kind of sick sense. _

"No way..." Riven snarled, his face contorted with rage. "You're such a bitch, Darcy"

Darcy actually hung her head in shame. She deserved that, she knew.

"Wait a minute…" Kim Lee intervened. "Why are you telling us this now?"

Darcy hoped the question wouldn't arise, but now that she had, she knew she had to answer it. "Well that night, when I found Riven missing… I … I went to look for him…"

All eyes were on her again.

"He was searching for Musa, and I just sat a top a tree and watched…"

"You were spying on me!" Riven was furious. _No wonder Musa went on and on talking about their 'first kiss' he had no idea about! He was under a bloody spell!_

"Well ya" admitted Darcy sheepishly "Anyway I saw Riven looking for Musa, and when he found her, the scene was just so beautiful… I realized then and there I could never be with Riven, and didn't want to. He and Musa belong together"

Musa looked away and blushed.

"Wait a minute, what do you mean 'be with' me?" Riven growled hoarsely. He didn't like where this was going. He didn't like the fact that he had been controlled by Darcy against his will, and didn't even know about it till now. He shuddered to think what she had made him do… he admitted it was fun to be mean and occasionally derive pleasure from sabotaging other's plans if it directly benefited him , but not like this. He hated to think what the witch had made him do to Musa…

But something didn't make sense, especially if Darcy wanted to 'be with him'

"Why would you make me kiss her then?" Riven asked, his head buzzing with confusion.

"To intoxicate me…" Musa replied sadly. _So it was a spell. A bloody spell that made him act that way. He had never really cared. _She moved away from Riven, and tried to stand up.

"Intoxicate? What the heck does that mean?" _The more I hear, the more confusing it gets…_

"So I can't transform…" Musa answered again, not being able to meet his eyes. _How long had she put together various theories about 'what happened that night'? It was all a spell; he only kissed me because he was compelled to, by a spell…_

"No, that's what I _made_ you believe Musa. You see, I knew you were madly in love with Riven… and I needed something that _excited_ you, something you couldn't control… the 'something' turned out to be Riven, it was quite simultaneous actually. I put you under the illusion that Riven's _touch_ was preventing you from transforming, it was intoxicating you…its all a bunch of rubbish"

_How could she?_ Thought Musa. _How could she just stand there and tell her all that she had believed for the past few days had been a lie? And how could she tell everyone, including some strangers that she was nothing but a pathetic girl who had hopeless fallen for an arrogant man who would only laugh at her behind her back? How was she to feel when she knew now that all the scenes she had been playing over and over in her head endlessly in the privacy of her room, which took her breadth away, were all forced by a spell?_

She got up slowly, shakily, trying to digest the information. It was so embarrassing. Riven knew. That's why he had been playing around with her the past few days, he knew she was an easy target and he didn't have to try to hard to have a fling with her. He thinks I'm some kind of desperate whore. She thought, feeling disgusted with herself, feeling disgusted with Darcy and feeling disgusted at Riven. Stupid male chauvist pig… She remembered how he had kissed her then, that night, in her room. She remembered how she had reacted, by spiritedly jumping on him and kissing him back playfully…the images began to play around in her head, and she began to back away from the group.

Seeing her Kim Lee was immediately by her side. "Let's get out of here…" she whispered to her softly. She didn't want to face Riven, Darcy, anyone... it was just too humiliating…

She was running then, Kim Lee beside her.


	21. Let's Get a Cofefee

**Let's get a coffee **

"Musa…wait…" Riven was calling out to her, coming after her. He just wasn't going to let her go. But she didn't stop. She ran, unsteadily supported by Kim, who understood her friends' urgent need to get away. They were sitting in the car before they knew it, driving away, and Riven fruitlessly trying to keep up with them with his long legs.

_I am losing all my dignity_ thought Riven roughly as he ran after Kim Lee's car. A bike parked on the far side of the road caught his eye. Without thinking, he darted to the bike, hopped on it and started chasing after the car. _He was not going to let Musa get away from him, yet another time. First with the levi-bike, then in her room and now in her friend's car_ he thought. _What the hell was going on anyway? Why was he always the one chasing after her, and she the one giving him the slip over and over again? Did it make sense even running after her once again?_

It would only backfire on him, he knew, but still… he cared about her, a lot. He had tried over and over to convince himself during those two weeks that she was not worth running after. He had been moody and grouchy from the time he had left her room. He often contemplated going to meet her once again, but remembering their last meeting, it didn't seem to be a very good idea. This time, too it was him that was doing all the running, once again. He sighed exasperatedly and focused intentionally on the car he was supposed to pursue.

"He's following us" Kim informed Musa in a sing-song voice. Musa was breathing heavily, trying not to throw up. She cursed Riven; she cursed alcohol, realizing the irony of the situation, since they both were instrumental in 'intoxicating' her. _I hate that word! And I hate both of them!_

"Looks like he's gaining on us, man…he seems determined!" Kim said. She felt a bit insulted that Musa hadn't told her about this 'night' with the guy. There was a 'first kiss' involved too. She knew all too well that Musa was not much into guys, especially since she had been making futile attempts to hook her up from the age of twelve. She wondered what was going on between those two. The witch had been talking some nonsense, most of which she didn't understand, but she had said that Musa was gaga in love with the guy. "You've got some explaining to do…" she continued, eyeing her friend, who looked green in the face.

She shook her head "not now"

The bike was neck to neck with the car now, and Musa felt glad Kim was one of those champion racers, who could drive despite the mere handicap of being slightly drunk, but she knew Riven wasn't far behind. A reluctant flashback raced through her mind, about how she had cheered for him in the bike race.

"Sure you don't want me to pull over?" Kim asked her. She was no stranger to car accidents. Musa heaved a sigh. "Stop" she said reluctantly. The car skidded to a halt.

Riven was astonished when he saw the car pull over. _Just when I was starting to enjoy the chase_ he thought. But in truth, he was now fumbling for words. The damn tongue-tiedness again.

Musa leapt out of the car and slammed the door. She had had enough. She had been running away for far too long, avoiding him for too long. Might as well hear what he had to say, tell him what she thought, and get it finally done with.

Her confidence diminished with every step as she walked briskly towards Riven. He had removed his helmet, and was leaning against the stolen bike, his trademark smirk playing on his face. Her pace slowed. She was approaching him, for the first time. Her heart was beating like a little bunny. _I am such a coward…_ she thought.

"Well?" that was all she could think of saying to him.

He raised his brow, but she noticed a drop of sweat lining it. "Well what?" he asked nonchalantly, as if she had been the one chasing him all this time.

"Why were you chasing me?" she snapped. Riven felt like such a dick. _Why was he acting like a cold bastard now? She had approached him for god's sake! Be nice at least!_ He told himself.

"Err…Musa now that Darcy has cleared it up for us, I hoped maybe…we could talk" he confessed, horrified that his cheeks grew hot. _Guys don't blush _he scolded himself.

"Darcy!" she snapped. "Yeah I've been meaning to ask you what the hell was she doing with you?"

He raised his hands in surrender. "We were just talking…"

She shook her head with disgust "Sure"

"Come on Musa…its not like I owe you anything…" he said, _he had been the one running after her. She had no right to be jealous. Was she jealous?_ A spark of hope ignited inside him.

She shot a disgusted glare at him. _Didn't owe her anything? How could he say that?_

"Musa…" Riven continued "Let's not end this badly, once again. We need to talk. Let's get a coffee"

She regarded him with disbelief. _Was he asking her out?_ But she couldn't bring herself to ask him that question. Instead, she nodded mutely.

"I'll go tell Kim…" she said, and scampered off to inform her friend. Her heart beating fast. She felt nervous having to go out with him.

Riven watched her, awe-struck as she ran towards the car. _Did he just do that?_ He mused, stiff with surprise. _Did I just ask Musa out?_ Another emotion seeped through his veins, overpowering the amazement he was feeling. Joy. He felt happier than he had all week.

_She had said yes! __**Sure,**__ it was only a half-hearted nod but it was still a form of acceptance, finally she was willing to talk, to listen to what he had to say, to discuss what had happened that night. _

She was back in a flash, panting, sweaty and totally adorable in her child like manner.

"Let's go" she panted.

Riven motioned towards the bike and began to walk towards it, not missing how red Musa's cheeks had gotten.


	22. Take me Home

**Take me home **

Musa approached the bike cautiously, noting it wasn't the same one she had seen that night. _That night._ She thought with a shiver. _That night was the most exciting night of my life._ She recalled her experience with his bike before, an involuntary shiver running down her spine, both of fear and excitement.

"Cold?" there was disguised concern in his eyes.

"No" she replied evenly "Just nervous"

He grabbed the bike, straddled it, regarding her knowingly and watched her as she gingerly climbed on. She stumbled slightly, feeling light-headed, but he caught her, and pulled her back onto the bike. His free arm almost automatically bent backwards and held her to him.

She buried her head in his shoulder, and Riven felt his heart leap.

"Scared?" he asked. She had had various experiences with his bike, after all…

"A little" her honesty took him somewhat aback, but he recovered quickly.

He started at a slow pace, then increased the speed gradually, and when she didn't object, went at his usual break-neck speed, enjoying the thrilling rush of adrenaline as it pumped through his veins, through his entire being.

"How you feeling?" he asked; concerned, since she hadn't said a word since they took off.

"Nauseous and woozy" she replied, her voice barely audible.

He slowed down again. "You want me to stop?" he enquired,

a little hesitantly. _I was just beginning to enjoy the ride, I thought she was too _he thought

She didn't reply, but he pulled over anyway.

"Stupid. Stupid. Stupid!" she was mumbling to herself "Oooh my head…"

Riven wondered why she always had something wrong with her when she was around him. _Maybe I'm bad luck_ he thought, darkly. _Maybe that's why mom left me… _

He carried her off the bike, she seemed fragile and limp against him. "Drunk too much…head spinning…" she mumbled.

Riven grinded his teeth at the injustice of it all. _One day. One day, she had said yes, and now this. _

He set her down on a bench beside the road; she was coughing, trying not to throw up.

Riven didn't know what to do. If it were anyone else, he'd simply have left them there to fend for themselves, or casually gone to ask someone for help. They wouldn't be his problem. But this _was_ his problem. He cared about her, and because of that, he was helpless and confused.

Musa's head spun violently. She was trying hard not to throw up, but suddenly it all came out, all over Riven's shirt. The expression on his face was priceless. He looked disgusted, confused and concerned at the same time. She would have burst out laughing if she wasn't feeling so embarrassed.

"Oops… Riven…I'm sorry…ugh" that was all she could muster.

Riven would have hit the person at the blink of an eye. _But this was Musa. Well…he wasn't wandering around with puke on his shirt._ A slightly disgusted and annoyed specialist removed his shirt.

The sight of his bare skin made Musa gasp. "Ooh" she sighed, coming closer to him, her eyes widening as they wandered up and down his bare chest. The alcohol had served well to remove all her inhibition; she reached up and caressed his face. Riven stood very still, unable to react to her touch, rigid and perturbed. His heart beat violently against his ribcage. _What was she doing to him?_

"Take me home" she demanded huskily.

"Alfea?" he managed to choke out. _Maybe it was best that she go back… _

She shook her head, fumbling for words. She felt a twinge of inhibition, but brushed it away. She couldn't ignore the over powering feeling of unadulterated lust that seeped through her, causing her to abandon all reason.

"No, your home…" she clarified, her eyes misting over, holding his gaze.

A lifetime of experience hadn't prepared him for this. It wasn't like girls weren't throwing themselves at him all the time; in fact, they were… but not someone he was madly in love with… not Musa…

A wicked part of him wanted desperately to comply with her request. _"Do it"_ It said _"when else will you get a chance like this? She's asking you after all, it's not like your forcing her…"_

But then another side of him, the virtuous side, spoke _"don't take advantage of her"_ it said. _"She has trusted you enough to go out with you. Are you going to betray her? She is drunk and can't think straight…a fool could see that. Don't be an idiot. You'll regret it in the morning" _

She was still gazing at him benevolently. He would have kissed her if she hadn't just vomited.

"Musa…" he said, unsure and undecided.

"Riven I want you…" she begged desperately. Her hands came up to clasp his head. He moved away from her, pushing her hands away. _Was he rejecting her?_ She thought heart

sinking.

"No" he backed away from her "no"

Her eyes filled with tears. _What kind of person rejected an offer like this? _

"I am taking you back to Alfea" he commanded, voice stern. She was obviously not thinking straight. She needed to go home, now.

Humiliated by his rejection, she stood stiffly and glared at him. "then I'm going to Jared"

"What!" anger was evident from his voice.

"If you won't have me, I'm going to Jared"

"Musa, behave yourself…" he gripped her hand roughly and dragged her towards his bike.

"I am taking you home…your home" he growled angrily, infuriated by her threat.

"Riven, I am serious" She was looking at him sadly, almost desperately.

"Some other time…"

She shook her head. "Now" she commanded.

Heaving a defeated sigh, he nodded. "Okay"

_Nothing's going to happen_ he told himself, as she happily got on the bike again. _She's going to fall asleep on me and I'll just take her home._

But she didn't fall asleep. She was awake the whole time, and he could do nothing but take her to Red Fountain. A part of him was glad they were going there. They stepped into his room, his single room. Riven thanked his lucky stars he no longer had a roommate, or else he would have had to explain the situation to him, as well.

Musa, still feeling heady and dizzy, admired Riven's room. It was exactly like how she thought it would be. A stuffed ogre's head hung on the wall as a decoration. The walls were painted with red and black paint. Pictures of levi-bikes and 'Welcome to Hell' was written on a wall. A long, thin black iron cot stood under the open window covered by a thin, pale blue curtain which was fluttering in the wind. A shelf stuffed with books stood beside the cot, with books toppling out. A desk stood on the other side of the room, crammed with study books. His thin, long magenta sword was placed atop them.

"My room" he shifted uncomfortably, moving slightly to permit her in. This was the first time a girl was entering his room, including the previous one. Whenever he had his 'flings' they would either do it in her room or a hotel. He had never allowed a girl to enter his room. _Not willingly atleast_ he thought, thinking about Darcy.

After Helia had left, Riven wasted no time in arranging his stuff, painting the walls and 'decorating' his room with stuff that defined his personality…he didn't like to admit it, but he felt proud to show Musa his room.

_So this is Riven's room_. Musa's dark eyes roamed across the walls, trying to take in every single detail. _The room was a complete harmonization of his character._ She could feel the effect of the liquor leave her significantly, making her weak in the knees. But she knew what she had to do first.

"May I use the bathroom?" she asked.

He ushered her inside, and waited patiently as he heard her throw up more. _What am I going to do?_ He thought. He was trying to keep a check on his hormones, but they were racing around, causing him to experience illicit desires. The moral dilemma, once again, began playing in his head.

She was back before he had made his decision. Her eyes were bloodshot, heavy and dazed. She walked haphazardly, back slightly bent. Musa had had better days. Right now all she felt like doing was curling up in a warm blanket and sleeping for a long, long time.

Riven jumped up and led her to his bed. She sat down and looked up at him, eyes hooded and unfocused. "Riven, I thought we were…" She tried to say more, but he put a finger to her lips.

"Sash…good night, my little princess. He placed a soft kiss on her lips, then and shifted her into sleeping position. He placed his blanket over her (which was mid-night black, with pictures of bats and various other creatures of the night) She curled up, yawning openly, forgetting what she wanted to say. The blanket's soft and comfortable warmth was having that effect on her.

To him, she was the most adorable thing in the whole world. She was all he had. He cared about no one else in the entire universe. He had no family, no friends. _She was everything to him_, he realized and he would not let anyone harm her, or cause her pain. Not even he, himself. Even if she wanted it. So strong was his desire to just crawl in beside her, which he almost did, but restraining himself, he shut and bolted his room door, and lay down on a bed sheet just beside the cot, as close to her as he possibly could.

_Its only if she needs something._ He thought. _Bullshit... If she needs __**me**_He closed his eyes, the last thing he saw was her cherubic face, thick bluish-black hair falling across her face, mouth slightly open, snoring rhythmically._ The most important person in his life._

Author's note: thanks for reading! Don't kill me if the next update isn't too soon! Review and let me know what you think!


	23. Back at Alfea

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **

**Finally! I'm back and thi is the end! I'm posting 5 chapters today and there will be no more! I'm pretty proud of the story…it was worth writing for my enthusiastic readers! Reviews will be appreciated. Suggests, comments, flaws, flames…anthing.**

**Enjoy!**

**BACK AT ALFEA **

Back at Alfea, Tecna got a call.

"Hey Tecna, this is Kim Lee….we spoke earlier. Has Musa come home yet?"

"Huh?"

Tecna had been sleeping soundly for an hour or so, but hearing Kim's comment, her eyes shot wide open.

"I thought she was with you!" she replied. It was true that Musa had left through the open window seconds after she had left the room, but Tecna had detected her current location and found her with Kim.

"I just figure she was having some kind of sleepover with you…. Since you seemed to be really good friends…"

"No…she said some guy was going to drop her home…"

"What! And you let her go?" Tecna fumed, as her mind zeroed in on one conclusion as to where Musa could be. _Was this girl out of her mind? _

"Well…she seemed to know him…and…" Kim tried to substantiate as to why she had let Musa go with him.

FLASHBACK

"Hey Kim" she panted.

"Hey muse… gave him a piece of your mind?"

She blushed. "No, no…actually, he offered to drop me home"

Her eyes widened incredulously.

"But I was…"

Musa waved her hand dismissively. "Don't worry Kim, he's safe! Besides, you'll have to go out of your way to drop me…I'll just go with Riven… its on his way…"

"So he followed you all the way just to ask you if you wanted a lift? You know Musa…I'm not stupid…"

Musa blushed furiously again. "Oh Kimmie… I'm leaving with him okay?"

After a doubtful pause, Kim nodded. "Be careful, okay?" Musa nodded and blushed more furiously. She then scampered off towards Riven.

END OF FLASHBACK

"That's not the point!" screeched Tecna. She was worried now.

Kim Lee gulped. "Sorry…is there anything I can do?"

"Haven't you done enough already?" snapped Tecna. She hung up and threw the phone on her pillow with disgust.

"Guys! Guys!" she hollered, running to her friends' common room.

Soon, a bunch of sleepy fairies reluctantly ambled out of their rooms, complaining.

"What up Tec?" asked a heavy-eyed Stella. "I swear if this is not important, I am going to kill you… I've got a date with Brandon tomorrow morning…"

"Musa never came home!" Tecna exclaimed.

"We know!" Layla groaned exasperatedly. "You detected her with Kim Lee, remember? Gosh, sometimes I wonder why they call you a genius…"

"No! She's with Riven now!"

Stella's eyes widened with interest. "Really?" she asked, in disbelief.

"Okay…" Bloom said she did not know how to react. _Riven was a playboy, after all._

"Let's detect where they are!" cried a worried Flora.

Tecna grabbed her computer and clicked it on.

"I seriously don't know what you're so worried about, girl….if they want to be together, it shouldn't be any of our business" Stella said, glaring at Tecna. _What was her problem anyway? It wasn't like she and Timmy didn't… did they?_

"Stella, Musa could be in big, big trouble!" snarled Layla. "We don't even know what's going on!"

"Have you detected where they are yet?" Bloom anxiously enquired, staring at the computer.

There was a knock at the window.

"Who the heck…" Stella ran towards the window and saw a witch hovering outside. She was short, with Asian features, chalk white skin and upward slanting eyes. She knocked on the window again. "Let me in" she mouthed.

Stella grabbed the window's handle and flung it open.

"Kim Lee…" the girl panted "I'm Kim Lee"

"Oh man! It's her!" hollered Flora.

Tecna glared at Kim as she crossed herself and shivered slightly. A sudden beeping from the computer diverted everyone's attention.

"So…?" demanded Stella, eyes narrowing at the incoherent gibberish.

Tecna's eyes widened as she struggled to digest and explain the information to her friends. "She's in his bedroom!" she yelled.

"Oh no!" Kim gasped, overwhelmed with guilt. _It's all my fault…_

"Thanks a lot…" Layla glared at the witch.

"Let's go!" yelled Bloom. They all transformed, except for Stella.

"Wait!" she cried, before everyone took off. "Let's not get too hasty here…how sure are we that we aren't interrupting a very** intimate** and **consensual** session? Maybe it's what Musa wants! Who are we to stop her?"

"But…but she's drunk…" Flora spluttered, indignantly.

"That has just loosened her up! And Riven's no rapist, either…he is one heck of a playboy, but who are we to judge whether Musa is doing the_ 'right thing'_ for herself or not?"

"We could like, check up on her…" Layla intervened, half-heartedly. She was beginning to see the logic in Stella's words.

"Well, I'm certainly going!" yelled Tecna. She couldn't keep down the jealously she was feeling. _Musa and Riven, together, in bed… she couldn't bear it…_

_It had started out as a simple crush…_

FLASHBACK

Timmy had asked her to go and take a look at the hover-craft before the gang set off.

Tecna walk up irritably towards the craft. Lousy Timmy. _Couldn't he have done it for himself? Of cause he would…but he had his stupid science fair. As if he had thought about anything for the past two weeks… as if he had even pretended to care about her…_

Feeling rejected and depressed, she changed into her Winx form.

In her sleek, tight-fitting sparkly sky-blue bodysuit, along with a triangular hat she was a fine sight to behold.

When she reached the craft, she saw a magenta-haired specialist leaning against it casually, smoking a cigarette.

Her breadth caught her throat…it was not the smoke from the cigarette, but his clear, azure eyes arching artistically as she came closer towards him. His mouth twitched into a dazzling grin with self-obsessed arrogance in every one of his fine white ivory teeth.

"Where you off to in such a hurry?" he enquired, shapely brows arching to reveal his admiration as she stood in front of him.

Suddenly, the Winx costume she was so proud of didn't seem so cool anymore… _I wish I had changed…if only I knew he'd be there…_ she thought, wistfully.

"Riven…" she gasped, breathlessly. She wanted to say more, but…

**Trring, trring, trrring…**

Her cell phone rang. She wished she had put it on silent mode. She reluctantly answered it.

"Hey!" Timmy. _**What a surprise.**_ _As if anyone else called her._ "Hope everything's ready! We're coming!"

"Timmy… you sent me only a minute ago!" she yelled incredulously. Riven's grin widened cockily. He extinguished his cigarette, stamped it out; and, with a mock salute, walked away.

"Right, sorry…but be quick they're coming…" he said, uncomfortably. His uncertainty would have aroused an emotion of affection for him within her, but today, she felt empty, drained, and even angry. _He was the stupidest smart guy she knew… and Riven was too far way to call back…._

END OF FLASHBACK

The five fairies stood stiffly and looked at each other, not knowing what to say. Kim stood a few yards away, feeling totally awkward. _Why the hell had she bothered to come? Her presence didn't seem to serve any purpose; it only made the situation much worse…_

Stella's eyes narrowed dangerously at Tecna. _She's act weird… a little too caught up with Riven and Musa…._

Tecna glared back at her, mentally damming the brimming tears that threatened to overflow. She knew she had no right to interfere, or be jealous, but…

­­­­­­­­­­­­----­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­


	24. Electricity

**Electricity **

When Riven awoke, he saw the same cherubic face, thick bluish-black hair, with mouth slightly open, a drop of moist saliva lining her cheek.

_Musa…_

He sighed, knowing that this was probably the last time he would be able to look at her, _really look at her_, without her trying to hide her self from him with wit and sarcasm and he, him self, being able to look at her without his damn ego and pride coming in the way. He felt cornered, trapped, scared; even- when she was around. He felt like a desperate fool trying to collect water in a spoon of holes. There was nothing to cling on to, but he would keep on trying, secretly.

He wanted to get away. Run away from this sweet, innocent thing he loved so much. _What was he going to be able to offer her?_ _She gained so little from him, but gave him so much in return. He was not good enough for her! She could do so much better than him…_

Yet, she was here; with him- trusting him, demanding to spend a night with him. Though it was under the heavy influence of liquor, could there be other reasons why she wanted to be with him? _Was it the liquor that spoke when she asked him to take her home that night, or lust, longing…. love?_

An unsure feeling crept up his brain and clung to it like glue. He could not shake off the feeling that, even though he had overcome his hormone-crazy thoughts and intentions, he had some how let her down, been irresponsible, and been a_ jerk_. He snarled angrily at himself, louder than he had intended.

Being familiar with every single sound on an ordinary morning had its demerits- waking up when you hear an unfamiliar sound. And Riven's snarl was unfamiliar. Musa awoke with a start, sensing danger.

She sleepily rolled over- right off the narrow bed and onto Riven, who was sleeping close, under the bed.

Riven gulped. _He was nervous! Of a bloody girl! _

Still, her dark, heavily-hooded eyes made contact with his and he couldn't stop looking at them. They held them captive. Unable to look away, he just stared, finding it impossible to ignore that she had strategically fallen right into his arms, one of her legs straddling his, causing electric sensations to climb wildly through his entire body. She saw her face pale slightly as she continued to stare confoundedly back at him, incapable of expressing what she was feeling.

The whole situation was pretty alien to both of them, and they did not have a damn clue about what to do…how to react. They both were afraid of bursting out with emotion.

Riven was afraid that if he opened his mouth, a rude retort would escape his lips, something he didn't mean. Or he'd say something stupid, like** 'I love you'**, which petrified him, because those words he'd been meaning to say might not be returned, or even thrown away, twisted and manipulated into something ugly. Besides, it would require a complete surrender, make him entirely dependant on her command, leaving him empty and barren, mauling his heart if his emotions were, indeed, rebuked.

Musa, on the other hand, her cheeks flaming with embarrassment, tried not to successfully recall what had happened between both of them. She vaguely remembered throwing herself at him, which made her feel like a whore. _Had Riven taken advantage of her? Had they slept together? Did she want them to have slept together? Would she be disappointed is they hadn't? Could she possibly ask him? What did he think about her? _

Thoughts raced through her head, fear numbing her heated up body.

"Riven?' she said, shakily, not being able to stop staring at those blue, blue eyes, not being able to ask him any one of the million questions racing through her brain.

_One word_. One word and he understood the question in her eyes.

"No" he told her, meaningfully looking at her with determination.

"Riven, I… I… I mean…it was…."

"Ssshhhh…." He silenced her with his finger. It was strange and uncanny, but he knew all the unasked questions she was dying to ask him, but couldn't.

Her breadth caught her throat. They were so close…his finger in her lips, causing strange electricity through her. She was almost cradled against him, and she was amazed that they fit so perfectly together. _How comfortable and blissful she felt, lying with him, the way he was holding her against him. _

He wanted to kiss her right then and there. He bent lower, feeling her warm breadth against his neck. He longed to kiss her…feel her hair in his hands, feel her tounge against his…

_CRASH_

The sound was caused by breaking glass as Kim and Tecna entered Riven's room through the glass-paned window. The sound jarred the twosome out of their dazed world. The sound caused them to break away from each other and look up.

I was possibly the worst time they could have caught them in the act. Riven had never been so embarrassed in his life. Musa and he were just getting close, and… it was ruined again, by a disaster. Her friends were glaring down at him. Great. To hysterical, overprotective girls who would breadth down his neck even if he were the perfect guy for Musa. (Which to his secretive self he was, but would die before confessing that) He just lay there, stupid and confused, still in shock with what had happened.

Musa was the first to react.

"What…what you doing here?" she asked them, shakily.

"What's up, fairies?" Riven asked, resuming his usual, carefree attitude, though a slight, nervous edge was evident.

Tecna stalked over to Riven, who moved slightly away. She was livid. "You!" she breathed, angrily.

He raised his eyebrow, with the same infuriating nonchalance that he always portrayed. "Me?" he enquired.

Tecna had never been so angry. Of cause, she had technically no right to be, but she couldn't break down this situation with numbers or logic. There was pure, red rage flowing through her veins_. How could Riven be so cool about it?_ It only enraged her further.

Kim and Musa stood there, silent spectators.

_Kim had decided to accompany Tecna on her little quest. "It's the least you can do, considering its all your fault" Tecna had snarled, as all her friends headed back to their respective rooms "We can't tell you what to do, Tec- but you'll have to face Musa if something goes wrong" Stella pointed out, before shutting her door. _

"You okay?" she asked her friend, uncertainly as Tecna continued to glare at Riven.

"Fine" Musa told her, and then unable to control her annoyance, continued "why did you come, Hun? I _told _you I trusted him, I told you_ you _could trust him… so why did you come?"

Kim Lee was unable to meet her friend's eye. _Why __**had**__ she come, anyway? She was free of any guilt, until she had called Tecna, who had shown so much concern for her friend's safety, it almost felt irresponsible not to land up at Alfea and accompany her here._ _Tecna…who had seemed to care so much for her roommate, but hadn't even bothered to look at her since she got there. _

Finally, it all made sense… Tecna was not here for Musa, she was here for Riven! She was madly jealous! It was so obvious now; it was strange she hadn't seen the connection before!


	25. Tecna Goes Crazy

**Tecna Goes Crazy**

The silence between Tecna and Riven continued, both knowing why they were here, but not knowing they knew (Tecna didn't know Riven knew she liked him, and Riven isn't sure whether Tecna doesn't know he knows she likes him)

"Well, what?" Riven asked, eyeing Tecna stonily.

"What's going on here?" Musa finally intervened. "Tecna, why you so angry? He hasn't done anything to me…you…you shouldn't have come…"

Tecna's attention was finally averted. "Shouldn't have come? Shouldn't have come?" she shrieked hysterically, in rage. "And let you have your way with him…you stupid, drunk whore!"

Tears brimmed in Musa's eyes. She blinked them back silently, too shocked to respond. She moved back, knees buckling._ What was she saying? Is that what the __**all**__ her friends thought of her?_

Kim grabbed her friend, offering her support, trying to think of an appropriate response cruel enough to counter Tecna's remark.

But she didn't need to. Riven marched up to Tecna and grabbed her throat, almost strangling her to death before releasing her, fighting to keep control of his untamed anger.

"Don't you ever…" he seethed "How dare you… how could you…say something like that!"

_Perhaps he had overreacted_. He didn't imagine he'd react so quickly, so violently. _But he couldn't tolerate someone insulting her like that, especially not now…when she was so vulnerable and dreading just that._

Tecna massaged her throat and glared at Riven, tears flowing out of her eyes. "She doesn't deserve you!" she yelled. "I do!"

Musa gasped, as she too, realized what this was all about. _**Tecna…Tecna…loved Riven!**_

Tecna backed away from the trio; hands on her mouth, shocked with what she had uttered. "I…mean..."

"Tecna, I know" he told her mater-of-factly.

Tecna's heart began to beat faster as she backed away further. _He knew? __**How?**__ Was it that obvious? _

Musa looked back and forth at Tecna and Riven, as the drama continued. She vaguely wondered how he knew. She made a mental note to ask him late. Later…would there be a later?

He sighed, a little sorry for her, though it was not the first time he was reject a girl. The fact that she was a close friend of Musa's only made it worse. "It's a long story…but I know…I've known for sometime now, believe me, I didn't mean to hurt you…"

"No!" cried a frantic Tecna "you love me! I know it! You just can't say it, because of… her" she glared pointedly at Musa.

A gasped escaped Musa's lips when she saw the hate on Tecna's face. _She hated her._ Kim was getting pretty tired of this. "Get over it Tecna! I think we should leave!"

A maniac laugh poured out of Tecna's mouth. "_Leave_!" she said incredulously. "She'd like that wouldn't she? She'd get more time to…to seduce him into liking her and not me…she's already seems to have succeeded!"

Riven sighed exasperatedly. For a smart ass, she was acting really stupid. "Tecna" her eyes met his evenly, determinedly. He tried to ignore the twinge of madness that seemed to have ignited in them. "I. Don't. Love. You." he tried to make it as clear as possible, well aware that he was breaking her heart. But he wanted to spell it out clearly for her, so that they would have no misconceptions in the future…his future with Musa.

She shrieked angrily, with pain. "Yes you do…" she mumbled.

"No" he told her firmly.

"Would it help if I killed her?" she asked. The seriousness with which she asked the question scared everyone. The statement was so clear, so direct, that it left no doubt that she was eager, willing and would go to any extent- that she was ready to do anything it took to attain Riven.

"Tecna stop it!" Musa wailed. She hated to see her behaving like this. They had always got along…why had she suddenly changed?

"Die bitch" Tecna rasped as she directed a spell at Musa. It was a non-verbal spell. Musa grabbed her throat, choking, and bent over in pain.

"Musa!" Riven cried, running up to her and cradling her in his arms. She coughed and shuddered in pain. He watched her, helpless, unable to stop her suffering.

Kim stepped in front of them. "Heart of steel!" she bellowed,

The spell hit Tecna directly at her heart. She froze momentarily and then fell flat on the ground, motionless. Kim stood stiffly, transfixed, shocked with what she had done.

Musa felt like every inch of her was on fire. Pain seared in every corner of her body. Though her pain, she had seen her friend crumple and fall." Is she okay?" moaned Musa, still beading over with pain.

"Stop talking!" Riven commanded her firmly, as he fought to keep the emotion out of his voice. He grabbed her hand, and she squeezed it hard, as she unsuccessfully tried to prevent herself from screaming with pain.

Kim abandoned her feeling of momentary distress as she remembered her friend needed her.

"What's happening to her?" Riven asked frantically.

Kim examined her friend closely, trying not to lose control of her emotions as well. Detecting the spell was going to be difficult, especially since it was non-verbal, and she needed to be strong.

"Scan" she said, unsteadily. Rays of light shot out of Musa's body. Kim had to examine each one. Riven could have screamed. there was nothing he could do. He didn't want to run out in the corridors of Red Fountain, screaming for help, as none of the specialists knew how to perform magic.

"This could take some time!" she told Riven frantically.

Though her pain, Musa heard her friend.

"I don't think I can hold on any longer" she whispered to Riven.

A lump caught his throat. "Shut up! Shut the hell up!" he told her frantically, silently willing her to fight the pain and try not to break down himself.

"Still so rude" Musa commented, smiling through her tears.

"I said stop talking!" growled Riven. "Are you done yet?" he asked Kim, who frantically, scrolled through the possible spells that could have been used on Musa.

"Riven…" Musa continued, undaunted by him discouragement. "I don't think you should bother…I'm going to die…"

"Your. Not. Going. To. Die" he told her determinedly, as she squeezed his hand really hard.

"Can't we take her back to Alfea?" he asked, desperately.

"It would take too long on the Levi bike…we'd need some kind of teleported" shouted Kim. She has getting desperate now. She was only a beginner after all, and didn't know many fairy spells; she only knew how to counter them.

"Stella" coughed Musa. "We could call Stella!" the idea hit Riven instantly. _Why hadn't he thought of that before?_

"Password on her phone…" Musa moaned.

"Taken care of" Riven grinned for the first time. _Everything would be okay _he told himselfHe gestured to Kim. She bent down over the crumpled heap that was Tecna and dug into her pocket.


	26. A List of Problems

**List of Problems**

"We are the Winx…we are the join the club, we are the Winx…."

"That annoying ring tone again!" Stella growled. She made a mental note to change it as soon as possible, but it took her a long time to figure out _how_.

_Maybe I'll ask Tecna, she decided, as she reached for her phone. Maybe it was Brandon, feeling lonely, all alone in bed. Maybe he needed someone to talk to, as since she was his girlfriend, she'd be the first choice…._

She frowned when she saw an unknown number. She shrugged and decided to pick it up, anyway.

"Stella!" Riven. He was the last person she expected to hear from. Maybe he needed some advice regarding Musa? He _had _spent the night with her, after all….

A smile curved on her pink lips. "Hey sailor!" she teased, cheerfully. Riven was saying something, but she; as usual, wasn't listening. She just wanted to bombard him with questions. "How'd the night go?" he said something again; louder this time, but Stella was too caught up in the realization that had just hit her like cold water. She gasped, as she remembered they'd have intruders. Or had they already? "Hey, I heard Tecna and… and some friend of Musa's …Chinese name…don't remember it, anyway…."

"STELLA! GET YOUR BUTT DOWN TO RED FOUNTAIN! MY ROOM! USE YOUR TELEPORTER! IT'S AN EMERGENCY! NOW!" Riven was so loud, Stella dropped the phone in shock. She could still hear him as the phone hit the ground. She quickly snapped it up.

"But the rules….now?" she said, unsurely.

"NOW!"

"Can't it wait till morning?" she whined. "What's this about, anyway?'

"Stella, unless you want your friend to die this minute, you'll…"

"Coming!" Stella knew he was serious. She grabbed her nightgown and teleporter. _Who possibly could be injured? I hope it's not Brandon!_

"Room of Riven Elementarian, Red Fountain" she commanded the scepter.

Her vision got blurry and soon, she was standing in a black room full of weird things on the wall….totally uncolor-coordinated…she thought disapprovingly. That was until she saw Tecna, sprawled on the ground. "Tecna!" she screamed, rushing to her.

The Chinese girl was up, and blocked her. "what we need from you is _not_ concern or sympathy, we don't need you to fuss over her, or her …" she indicated towards Musa's direction "but we need you to teleport us _all, right now,_ to Alfea. Time is of the essence"

Stella glared at Kim. _She never liked her_. But she nodded, noticing Musa shaking terribly, and a teary eyed Riven holding her hand. _They're so cute together…_she thought, as she gave her scepter the command again. "Alfea" she cried.

There was spinning again. Stella felt slightly dizzy. They were outside the gates of the castle.

"Damn! Take her to that headmistress thing…" Riven growled, frustrated. Musa's grip over his hand was getting weaker.

Stella sighed. "Faragona's office!" she commanded again.

The spinning started again, and Stella was ready to throw up. Faragonda was sitting in her office, legs on the table, reading _'Wizards Gone Wild'_ magazine.

"Yes, darling, I _am_ wearing a nightgown, the one you gave me _last night_…" she giggled. Her eyes widened in shock to see that it was not Saladin, but five teenagers, who had come into her office.

"What brings you her?" she asked, in embarrassment. "Attire" she said, as her normal clothes resumed there rightful place on her body, in attempt to cover her over-exposed self from the students.

Riven was the first to react. "Miss…miss…" he began_. He didn't know her freaking name! _

"Musa needs help! She's been hit but a spell from Tecna…a non-verbal one…she's really in a bad shape" Kim explained.

"_**Tecna…?"**_ Stella gasped. _She couldn't believe Tecna would do that. Was the Chinese girl lying? _"What happened to Tecna?"

"Stunned with the heart of steel spell" said Kim coolly.

"But that's horrible!" said Stella.

"It's not fatal! I think Musa's in moral danger! _She_ did this to _her_!" shouted Kim.

"QUIET!" Hollered Riven and Faragonda together.

Faragonda bent over Musa, examining her. Riven watched her nervously, as Kim and Stella silently glared at each other.

"_Hmm…" _

"What is it?" Riven asked tensely.

"Well, it seems we have proof Tecna _**was**_ the one who cast the spell…I have never known anyone who can mix magic and technology so perfectly…"

"_WILL SHE BE OKAY?"_ Riven asked loudly.

Faragonda smiled.

"Yes, dear….it seems that Musa's mind has been attacked with a series of problems…mathematical, word, logical, geometric…her brain is overloaded with this information…it a good thing you brought her here in time…she could have gone mad otherwise…"

"_So what now?"_ asked Riven, looking like he was preparing to go insane, himself.

"We enter her mind!" Stella contributed, unexpectedly.

"Very good, miss Stella" Faragonda acknowledged her student.

"I'll get everyone" with that, Stella ran out of the office.

"_**What in fuck's name is going on!"**_ screamed Riven.

"_Language_, Mr. Elementarian…" Faragonda said disapprovingly.

She spoke a few words, laying her hands on Musa's head, as a thin silvery cloud came out of it, growing in size.

"Prepare for a very long list of problems" she told Kim and Riven. "Do them as fast as possible…the quicker you work, the faster she gets better"

"How do we…"Kim began.

"_Dive in…_others will be here to help you soon" Faragonda explained, casually, as the nurse to took Tecna away. "I'd help, but I have more interesting things to do…ta ta…" with that, she vanished into a cloud of smoke.

"Well…better do what the old lady says" said Riven, as he plunged into Musa's mind.


	27. Epilogue

**Epilodge **

A week later, a young man knocked on Musa's door.

"Come in" she hollered, cheerfully.

Riven entered the room silently.

"Hey muse…" she said softly.

Musa regarded him with tenderness in her eyes. "Hey yourself!" she said gently. "Where have you been? I've been calling…"

Riven ran his hand through his hair guiltily. "I've been…around…" he said, not meeting her eye. But Musa understood instantly.

"Not again!" she groaned. "You went to 'Illusion' again, didn't you, Kim's still sneaking you free booze. Huh?"

"Aw, come on now, Hun…after all those problems I had to solve in your head…"

"Come on, don't gimme that crap…it's been a whole week!" she pouted.

"Yeah, but my head still hurts…" Riven contested, pouting back and giving her a big kiss on the cheek.

"Ugh! I can smell it in your breathe!" she squeaked, trying to pull away, but Riven wouldn't let her.

"Want to taste it, tooo?" he demanded, huskily. Musa giggled and blushed, turning more serious as his lips inched closer to her face. His hot breadth warmed her face, he was so close. She could almost taste the alcohol he had consumed, not a few minutes ago…

"Party time!" yelled Stella, as she entered the room. "Oooh…ooops!" she giggled, as she saw she was interrupting something.

"CAN I PLEASE, PLEASE KISS HER WITHOUT YOU DUMB-FUCKS INTERUPTING ME EVERY SINGLE DAMN TIME!"

"Err…sure" Stella backed away and shut the door behind her.

"**NO** PEEPING THROUGH THE KEY HOLE EITHER!" he shouted.

The eye at the keyhole went to admire Brandon, who was flexing his muscle for a group of excited twelve year old girls. The eye and its partner narrowed in disapproval.

"_That_ was rude!" Musa glowered, as Riven reached up to silence her. "I have a dirty mouth, don't I? He asked her, as she whimpered under his brash seduction. "I need you to clean it for me…"

Musa pulled away, sniggering hard.

"What?" asked Riven, a little insulted.

"Clean it?" Musa asked him, incredulously.

"Heyyy! That's a hardcore pick up line!" he said defiantly.

"Maybe on Kim Lee it is…" she told him.

"Well, we got ourselves a problem…" he said, as he lifted her up into his arms. "Heyyy put me down!" squealed Musa, as he plunged her down on the bed and tickled her mercilessly.

"I give! I give!" Musa shrieked hysterically.

Riven suddenly stopped and shifted on top of her, covering her entirely. His eyes sought hers, and they were full of promise, as he told her how he felt, by continuing "Cuz it's not her I want, but you…"

Alfea, hospital room

He stood outside, feeling extremely nervous. He had come to meet her so many times in the last week, but she had never been awake.

_Today just might be the day_, he thought, which was what made him more nervous. _What would he say to her? What could he say to her? He had been a terrible boyfriend. He knew that. If Tecna was so crazy about another guy, it was obviously him that had driven her away…with his geeky manner and indifferent attitude to her. When was the last time he had done something for her? He asked him self. Sure, he did love her and always remember the important dates, but was it the same as the passionate, fiery man she dreamt of?_

_For Christ's sake…she was in love with Riven of all people! How far from his nature could you get? He could never be the knight in shining amour for her. The sooner she understood that, the sooner she could move on. And he? He still loved her. Probably always would. He couldn't be someone he wasn't…he had already figured that out. If Tecna couldn't like him for what he was, it was best that she find happiness with someone else. A relationship based on faking it was worse than no relationship at all. _

He sighed halfheartedly and pushed open the door.

There she lay, stiff as ever, on the hospital bed. She hadn't moved, eaten or drunk anything for a whole week now. The nurses had begun to get worried. How long could this spell last? How long could she last under the spell?

Timmy was a little surprise to see Faragonda beside her bed.

"Hello, Timmy" said Faragonda "visiting Tecna, are we?" she asked kindly.

He nodded mutely.

"It seems we finally know the cause of You see… when Kim Lee released the curse on her…she was really, really angry and released all her hate at Tecna… it's a witch thing… anyway, now the only way to reverse the spell is countering the spell…with the equivalent intensity of…love"

Timmy gulped. _He thought he knew where this was going_.

"Do you love Tecna?" Faragonda ask him.

Again, Timmy nodded mutely.

"Tell her how you feel, please" Faragonda told him kindly.

Timmy looked around the room. Half a dozen nurses were bustling around, and Faragonda was staring at him. He gulped.

"May I have the permission to ask for some privacy?" he enquired nervously. Faragonda smiled. "Well of cause, dear" she clapped her hands an ushered the Nurses out, and following them, closed the door shut.

He bent down to look at her. he didn't know hwere or how to start. He just spoke from the heart.

"Tecna" he began "you're so beautiful. Have I ever told you that? I always thought so…and still do. I want you to know that's it okay that you fell for Riven… I mean…I'm as much to blame as you are"

He paused, feeling foolish. _But if there was anyway to get Tecna back again, then he'd have to try._

"I know…I know…I've been a lousy boyfriend…believe me…you deserve so much better than me…but if there was anything I did right in our relationship…it was to…to hook up with a girl like you…. Tecna… you have no idea how perfect you are for me. I mean, you're smart, beautiful, funny, supportive…everything I've ever needed… and it kills me when I look back and realize how many moments I've lost to be with you, get closer to you…I love you Tecna…that's all there is to it… "

He bent down and kissed her.

Tecna opened her eyes to see Timmy. She had heard everything. It was only her heart had been turned into steel so she couldn't move or feel anything_. But now that Timmy had broken the spell, emotions came rushing back…the hatred for Musa, the jealousy, the numbness, the compassion and oneness she felt for the man who was kissing her so passionately…_

She gasped. His lips were so soft…so tender…so chaste. He loved her. She had heard it; she could feel it, even taste it and see it…

And that moment, Tecna forgot everyone she ever knew except Timmy. He held her protectively in his arms for a long time. Finally she spoke.

"Timmy…I'm so sorry about…"

"Sash… it's as much my fault as it was yours. I forgive you. Do you forgive me?"

She looked at him with renewed respect. _How could he act so mature under such circumstances? _"I…I…" she fumbled for words.

"Just say yes…" Timmy encouraged her.

"Yes" she said, and breathed. I felt like the whole world was crumbling around her. _What had she done? To her boyfriend, to her friends…to Musa and Riven….?_

"Oh my god…is Musa okay?" she remembered what she had done to her roommate_. Why had she gone so insane!_ Tears brimmed her eyes.

"They're all fine…helped her solve most of the problems myself…even the private codes we made up, remember?"

The relief sent a renewed sense of regret springing through her veins. _How bad a person she had become!_ And then she cried. For the first time in a long time. Timmy silently held her, offering all the support he could. She cried, and cried, and cried. And finally it was all over.

"Time to start new" she told Timmy, a little embarrassed for him to see her so raw, so emotional, so vulnerable.

He stood up and offered her his hand. "Can you walk?" he asked her. She held on to his hand, but – as if an afterthought, he scooped her up in his arms.

"How about we go out for lunch?" he whispered.

Tecna smiled "Gladly" and he carried her off.

Later that day, Tecna went up to her friends. She was really nervous and didn't know how she could face them, especially Riven and Musa. It was a good thing Timmy came with her.

She walked up to them shakily.

"Tecna! You're back!" exclaimed Flora. She ran up and hugged her, followed by Bloom and Layla.

Musa and Stella eyed her stonily. "Guys…I owe you an apology…especially Musa…" her voice caught in her throat and she couldn't go on.

But they understood. They all understood how sorry she was, she didn't need words. With nothing to say, she stretched her arms out. Stella enveloped her in a bear hug.

"Don't you ever turn crazy on us again!" she scolded.

Musa advanced slowly, cautiously.

"Musa…I…Musa…sorry…" she said, fighting back tears. Both of them broke down and embraced each other, till the rest of the group joined…even the specialists, Kim and Darcy (who were invited for the little "reunion")

Riven, of cause stayed away from the group hugging "nonsense" he couldn't believe how happy he was. He had his friends around him, he still had his single room, and most of all…he had Musa…th most important thing in the world to him.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: that was the END! I hope you liked it! I may write again… but certainly no a sequel…this story is too long already. Review! Review! I beg you!


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